Friday afternoon arrived faster than Blaine had anticipated. Kurt was bouncing at his side the entire day at school, and by noon Carole and his mother came to pick them up to get ready for the evening. His mother gushed and cooed at him the entire time he was getting dressed, putting in the contacts he never used, and styling his hair up off of his forehead. He hoped he looked presentable, but he didn't trust his mother to be completely honest or unbiased with him on the topic. She told him he was handsome even when he'd just rolled out of bed.

At six o'clock she drove him over to Kurt's house. They were all set to have dinner together before Mike and Tina picked them up so that they could all go together. Dinner was loud and boisterous and Blaine spent most of his time staring at Kurt, and with the encouragement of Kurt's hand letting his own hand slide up Kurt's kilt to rub his thigh. He blushed every time he looked at Kurt in it, and while the adults all though it was adorable, Blaine knew otherwise. Flashes of Wednesday afternoon kept running through his mind when he glanced at it, or when Kurt moved quickly and it flared up around his hips.

Throat bobbing at the thought, Blaine shoved his hands into his pockets to poof out the front of his pants as Burt, Carole, and his mother lined them up for pre-Prom pictures.

"You're so dashing in that suit," Kurt whispered as his hand settled on Blaine's waist and he smiled for their parents.

"You'd stop thinking that if you knew why I have to keep my hands in my pockets right now," Blaine murmured back through his teeth. "That kilt– "

"Blaine, could you put your arm around Kurt?" Carole asked kindly, changing the angle of her camera.

Kurt grinned over at him. "Yeah, Blaine, put your arms around me."

Blushing furiously, Blaine hesitated, catching the stern look on Burt's face and then shifting his position so that he was hugging Kurt from an angle, not quite behind him but not on his side either. He dropped his chin onto Kurt's shoulder and turned and kissed his cheek. The two women sighed happily at the sight, and Kurt blushed now, turning to meet Blaine's eyes.

"I see your point," he remarked softly, but Blaine didn't care now. He leaned in and kissed Kurt gently and the cameras flashed even faster.

"Okay, okay, stop before you blind them," Burt cut in, eyeing Kurt and Blaine.

Blaine gulped at the look, because he knew Burt liked him, and was happy that they were together, but he probably wasn't ready for them to start becoming more intimate just yet. Kurt cleared his throat, but kept himself in front of Blaine as Carole hugged him, and Burt cuffed him on the shoulder. Blaine's mother pecked him on the cheek and teased one of his curls loose.

"Have fun tonight, okay, boys?" she urged them, suddenly looking nervous.

"We'll be fine, Mamma, "Blaine assured her. "Don't worry."

Even though his words sounded confident, Blaine felt anything but. Mike and Tina arrived a few minutes later, and Blaine and Kurt left with them, hoping into Mike's car for the short drive over to McKinley.

As soon as they got out of the car the looks started, and Blaine held Kurt close in case anyone tried to get in their faces. Kurt, for his part, pretended not to notice any of it, held his head high and Blaine close, as they headed into the gymnasium.

The rest of the Glee Club had already taken over their own little corner near the punch table. But before they reached them a little group of jocks shoved their way between them and Mike and Tina.

"The hell are you wearing, Hummel?" Azimio demanded, glaring down at them.

Blaine's hand tightened on Kurt's hip and he took a reflexive step back at the three hulking figures bearing down on them.

"Looks like he's pretending to be a girl, so they can pass as normal," Karofsky added, taking a fake jump towards them that was meant to intimidate them.

Kurt flinched by Blaine's side, but Mike moved around and over to them.

"Guys, leave them alone," Mike ordered, resting his hand on Blaine's shoulder.

"Why? Do you like having this little fairy parading around in that?"

Before any of them could answer a snide, bitchy voice cut through the group. "All right, I am about to go all Lima Heights on you three. Don't you even dare try to ruin this prom with your penis envy problems."

"What– "

"Trust me," Santana continued, her tone slightly sarcastic and very annoyed. "I've seen what Hummel's working with, and really, I can't blame you for wanting one of your own, but getting up in his face, isn't going to make yours grow any bigger. Get lost."

"We don't– "

"Get lost," Santana said coldly, "or I will take the razor blades out of my hair and slice you."

Looking furious at the petite Hispanic girl, the three glanced over at the approaching Glee Club group and sulked off.

Blaine was amazed that Santana, of all people, had just helped him and Kurt. He also remembered Kurt saying she put up a bitchy front a lot of the time, but when it came down to it, Kurt had grown to like her, befriend her, even trust her, and maybe, just maybe Blaine could see part of the reason why now.

"Thank you," he said sincerely as Brittany appeared and stopped next to Santana.

"It's always more fun to do it together," Santana returned, and the tiny, very brief smile she graced him with spoke volumes to Blaine. Yes, there was a lot more to Santana than he'd thought, and he'd thought quite a bit considering he'd figured out she was a lesbian.

"Hi, Unicorn," Brittany greeted, pecking Kurt on the cheek and then glancing at Blaine with her big blue eyes. "This is your new puppy?"

"I– Britt, this is my boyfriend," Kurt supplied, hugging Blaine to his side.

"Oh, he's got cute puppy eyes," Brittany remarked. "Do you want to dance?" she asked Blaine.

Surprised, but rather flattered, Blaine agreed, and left only once he's promised Kurt the first slow dance of the night. The other pairs separated out onto the dance floor, and Blaine was privately glad that Santana was accompanying Kurt. Nobody would dare to mock him with her around. Sometimes he wished he had that sort of attitude and strength. Then he'd be enough to keep the bullies away from Kurt.

"When are you going to grow into a big dog?" Brittany wondered aloud, as they danced to the techno song blaring over the speakers.

"I– Britt, I think I'm done growing," Blaine told her, feeling almost like he was disappointing her with the answer. She seemed so innocent with her questions in some ways, but there was also something in her eyes that made Blaine think there was more than just a bizarre little view of the world in there.

"Oh, so are you a cocker spaniel? They have curls like you," Brittany continued, looking very interested.

Santana and Kurt danced up to them at that moment and Santana quipped, "You bet he is. Blaine's definitely a cocker."

"Oh my– we're switching partners now," Kurt demanded, sliding in between Brittany and Blaine as the song ended.

A slower song took its place, and Kurt looped his arms around Blaine's shoulders and held him close. It was the first time Blaine had ever slow danced with a boy, and even though it was Kurt he suddenly found himself jittery and nervous.

"This is nice," Kurt murmured, dropping his head onto Blaine's shoulder as they swayed between the other Glee Club couples.

Blaine hummed in agreement, resting his cheek on Kurt's forehead and smiling slightly as he took in the perimeter of friends guarding them. He hated that they had to, but it was incredible to see how much they cared about them. Kurt's lips brushed his neck as they continued to sway slowly, drifting back and forth as the song came to an end.

The rest of the evening went well for them. They danced with their friends and with each other, and while a lot of the other students glared at them during their intimate moments, nobody said anything. Blaine was starting to think nothing else would come from it, that they'd managed to survive their first prom together despite the odds, but then Principal Figgins stepped up onto the stage to announce the Prom King and Queen.

Immediately Blaine felt tense, and he was sure why that was until he realized a lot of people kept shifting their gazes towards them, specifically Kurt, smirking and looked pleased with themselves. It didn't make any sense to Blaine when he thought about it. What did the voting have to do with Kurt that nothing else had so far tonight?

"This year's Prom King is David Karofsky!"

But as he watched Karofsky roar his way to the front, hooting and cheering with the crowd a pit of dread opened up in Blaine's stomach. But that would mean– they wouldn't–

"This year's Prom Queen is... "Principal Figgins paused as he stared down at the name on the slip of paper, the smile dropping from his face as he looked back up at the crowd. "Kurt Hummel."

Against Blaine's side Kurt tensed, his eyes widening is disbelieve, and Blaine didn't know what to do. He could physically put himself between Kurt and the bullies, so could their friends, but something like this... he couldn't protect Kurt from that. For a dreadful moment the idea that Kurt might sink back in on himself because of this crossed his mind. They might lose each other after all, but then tears began to sparkle in Kurt's eyes as the rest of the students gave them contemptuous looks, and Blaine forgot the possible ends to this.

Kurt turned and ran, faster than he ever had in his life, and Blaine took off after his a second later, shoving through the crowd in pursuit of Kurt's sobs. They'd never be safe here, and Blaine hated that.

By Friday morning Blaine was exhausted. His legs were shaky as he walked to school, and despite having eaten a big breakfast at his mother's insistence he felt like he hadn't touched food in days. The whole week had been one disaster after another for him, and even the hope Glee Club had given him the day before didn't seem like much of anything now.

One week ago actually Kurt had slushied him in front of most of the student body. He'd lost his best friend and had no reasonable way of getting him back. Maybe he was completely foolish for wanting Kurt back in his left, but his heart hadn't changed its mind, even with all of the heartache.

He still loved Kurt, the Kurt he'd had and cherished, not the one that paraded down the hallways with the Cheerios squad now.

At his locker he greeted Tina, who hugged him consolingly and kissed his cheek.

"How are you?" she asked.

"It hurts a little less today," Blaine replied, a bittersweet smile gracing his lips. And it did. He was still angry, but it wasn't overpowering anymore. It had exhausted him to its extent for now, and he was left craved out and cracked open.

Tina nodded sympathetically as Blaine started to grab his books for his first few classes. They chatted for a few minutes and then Tina left to go to her own first class at the opposite end of the building.

As he finished grabbing his last notebook and fitting it into his bag, Blaine sighed heavily and closed his locker gently. It hurt just standing here, just being in this building. There were so many memories of the two of them, just in this one spot. Laughing, talking, smiling shyly at each other those first few weeks of September. It had been little more than a month since but somehow it was as if years had passed. Some moments Blaine felt like he'd been teleported back to fifth grade, and the next he was here in the present, hollow chest aching.

From the other end of the hall a hush fell, and it caught Blaine's attention. He glanced over and saw the crowd parted and Quinn, Santana, and Kurt at the top of the hall, heading in his direction. When he saw the slushies in their hands and the way Quinn's gaze was locked directly on him, he almost panicked. for a brief moment he almost ducked out of the hall and ran, but something hard and stern settled in his spine.

No, he wasn't going to turn away from this. If this was the path Kurt had settled on then he was going to make sure Kurt had to face it. He wasn't backing out to make this easier for Kurt. If this was Kurt's Friday morning ritual for him now then he would face it with his head held high.

Blaine snapped his bag shut and met Kurt's eyes for the first time since Tuesday afternoon. They were the same familiar gray-blue that marked a poignant sadness that Blaine related to Kurt's thought of his mother. His Kurt was still in there, waiting for him and scared of the consequences of who he was in a world less forgiving.

And Blaine was going to make that Kurt remember the truth every week if that's what it took to bring him back. He would stare him down and meet his eyes every single time.

Blaine Anderson wasn't a coward. He would see this through in the hopes that, someday, the sweet boy he loved would come back to him for good.

"Kurt, stop! Please!"

Blaine followed him through the halls, past couples attached at the lips and little groups of tearful girls, who had been dumped or turned down. Finally when Kurt reached an empty hallway he stopped, legs shaking, his hand covering his mouth as he cried. Blaine caught him just as he started to crumble down to the floor, sinking with his boyfriend in his arms.

"Shh, i- it's all right," Blaine tried to sooth, but he knew it was anything but. How could they do that to Kurt? How could anyone be so cruel over a kilt? He knew it wasn't that simple, though, even if the other students' minds were.

"N- no, it's not," Kurt choked out, drawing his knees up to his chest and twisting out of Blaine's arms. "Y- you were right. I s- shouldn't have w- worn it, we shouldn't even have c- come h- here."

Blaine leaned back against the lockers and let Kurt have some space. He needed it right now, which made Blaine's heart a little lighter. If Kurt had been completely torn apart by this he'd being sobbing and curled up in his lap, not swiping at his eyes, looking a mix of heartbroken and angry. This was his Kurt, still strong and true, and now unafraid of what they were facing.

"I- I'm just a j- joke to them now," Kurt said fiercely, "and a- all because I'm being myself."

Blaine pulled a packet of tissues out of his pocket, opened it , and offer them to Kurt. Gratefully, Kurt yanked one free and wiped his eyes and cheeks.

"What do you want to do?" Blaine asked softly after a few moments.

Kurt gulped and rubbed his eyes with the tissue again. "I... I don't know," he confessed quietly. "Part of me wants to run and never look back, but... that's not who I am anymore. I don't want to be him anymore."

"Running wasn't what made you that way," Blaine said solemnly. "Sometimes running is the only option, and if... if that's what you choose right now, we can just walk out of here, hand in hand."

"But sometimes it's not," Kurt argued slowly. "You never ran from me. no matter how many times I slushied you on Fridays. You always stayed."

"Because I knew there was something worth waiting for."

Kurt dropped his head onto Blaine's shoulder and wiped his nose a finally time. Fingers curling into the thick hair on the back of Kurt's head, Blaine massaged the other boy's scalp gently and let him come to his own decision.

After several minutes Kurt sighed heavily and squeezed Blaine's knee.

"McKinley isn't worth it," he decided quietly. "But we are. I won't let them take us down like this. I... I'm going back in and accepting to prove to them once and for that they can't touch us, Blaine. They can't take away what we share and even if it's the last thing I do at this school I'm doing to make sure they realize it."

Stomach tight, Blaine nodded as pride rushed through him. The choice scared him, but he knew Kurt had to do this, not only for them, but for himself more than anything. Kurt had come so far since December, and now was his time to show himself that.

Blaine took up, dusted his pants off, and offered his hand to Kurt to hoist him up. Kurt's hand slipped into his and they headed back towards the gym, Blaine pecking him on the cheek once and then turning off towards another door as Kurt entered back by the stage.

By the time he had gotten through the murmuring crowd to Santana, Mike, and Tina Kurt was stepping up onto the stage. A hush fell over the room as Mike whispered, "Is he okay, dude?"

Blaine shrugged. He was somewhere in between, far from perfect to the rest, but beyond it to Blaine. The crowd looked shocked as Kurt accepted his crown, said something snarky that made Principal Figgins start to smile and applaud, and then he moved towards the floor for the traditional King and Queen dance.

Karofsky hesitated for a moment, looking horrified by who he was expected to dance with, and then darted off into the crowd. Blaine had forgotten about this in light of what had just happened, could see the fear and rejection in Kurt's eyes as he twirled around to take in the silent, judging crowd around him. His heart sunk at the fear there, but he wasn't going to leave Kurt just standing there. They were past that now. That was for freshmen year, in a crowded, hostile hallway.

He stepped through the crowd and towards Kurt, smiled hesitantly and gave a silly little bow so that he could kiss Kurt's hand. "I believe I promised you a second dance earlier."

"Yes," Kurt agreed breathlessly. "You definitely did."

Kurt's eyes were bright with relief as they held each other close, swaying and twirling around the open floor. Eventually the Glee Club couples began to join them and then the rest, but Blaine could still feel how taut Kurt's body was against him. There was only so much they could handle before this place became too much.

"We can leave after this," Blaine told him softly. "We don't have to stay where we aren't wanted."

Kurt hiccupped and pressed his face into Blaine's neck. "I think I'll take you up on the Dalton idea right about now."

Blaine nodded slightly, eyes trained on all the people who kept looking their way. "Yeah, I think that's probably for the best."

Kurt nuzzled into his neck as the song came to a close, and Blaine held him tight and purposefully while the others began to crowd off for a more upbeat dance.

They'd be safe at Dalton. Safe and able to be together without taunts or ridicule at a place where each of them and their love could flourish and grow stronger.