Adam used to sleep as the proverbial stone. Once he was sound asleep, it practically took a cannon blast to wake him. His sisters always joked about him being able to sleep through the apocalypse. But something changed when he and Kurt started sleeping together. Maybe it was the unfamiliar sensation of sharing a bed; a head on his shoulder, someone's breath mingling with his, heartbeats synchronising; or maybe even some kind of misplaced paternal instinct- but whenever Kurt roused, so did Adam. Sometimes, like tonight, even before Kurt was fully awake.

Adam sat up, feeling disoriented for a moment until he realised he was not on a parade float at Disneyland dressed in a crab costume (really, sometimes his dreams were seriously whack) and he had woken up because Kurt had started thrashing in his sleep. His boyfriend's face was contorted into a deep frown, his eyes tightly closed, and his head lolled from right to left. "Kurt," Adam said. "Sweetheart, wake up." He ran a hand through his boyfriend's hair. Kurt let out a pained sob and slept on. "Kurt," Adam said, louder this time, repeating his name as if he was calling him from far away. He put his hand on Kurt's shoulder and gently shook him. Kurt's eyelashes fluttered, his eyes rolling fast in REM sleep.

Finally Adam was getting through- Kurt woke up with a start and scrambled away from his touch, clawing through the heap of pillows and blankets on their bed until he was at the furthest edge of the mattress. His eyes were wild and his face was pale and sweaty. He was breathing hard.

Adam gave him a few moments to realise where he was. This wasn't the first time they had woken up this way. Kurt blinked a few times and rubbed his hands over his face. As he focused again, Adam offered him a sympathetic smile.

"Pre-Dalton?" he asked carefully. Kurt had told him a bit about the memories he occasionally revisited in his sleep. It was difficult for Adam to see the person he loved so tormented by ghosts of the past, but the things Kurt had shared with him explained a lot about the man he was now. The stories he had told Adam - and the accompanying scars from the dumpster dives and locker slams Kurt had been subjected to- were horrific.

Kurt shook his head. His lip was trembling. "Worse," he whispered. "I dreamed- oh god, Adam! I dreamed I was back at McKinley and Blaine proposed to me right there in the courtyard!"

Adam raised his eyebrows. "Proposed? As in: marriage?" That was a rather weird dream to be having about your ex.

"Yes, and everyone was there, all my friends, my dad, even the guys from Dalton- and they were all shouting for me to do it. To say yes." He looked at Adam, who was looking troubled, and quickly shook his head. "I didn't want to, I promise. I tried to say no."

"But?" Adam prompted, despite himself. It was hard to keep being confronted with the fact that his boyfriend still cared so much about his ex. Kurt would get misty-eyed when they watched films that reminded him of Blaine, or choke up when certain songs played on the radio…and now he was dreaming of being proposed to? It felt like no matter what Adam did when Kurt was awake, his subconscious still longed for someone else.

"But every time I tried to say no, my throat would close up and I couldn't breathe! I felt like I was choking. Everyone was looking at me, expecting my answer. I felt like the only way I could survive was to say yes." Kurt looked thoroughly unhappy. "I'm really sorry," he offered. "I know how it must sound."

Adam reached out for Kurt's hand. Kurt took it, but made a face as if he felt he hardly deserved it. Adam knew he had to push his jealousy aside- Kurt hadn't done it on purpose. "It's okay, Kurt. It's not like I couldn't tell you weren't exactly having a good time."

Kurt hitched his shoulders up uncomfortably.

"Hey, come here," Adam offered, settling back against the pillows and extending an arm for Kurt to cuddle under, "and I'll tell you about my dream. It involved Disneyland and embarrassing costumes…" He winked.

Finally, a smile returned to Kurt's face. "Now why can't I have dreams like that?" he mused as he crawled into Adam's embrace and rested his head on Adam's chest. He sighed happily and Adam could feel the tension leave his body. Then, Kurt shifted to look at him. "Adam, will you do something for me?" he asked.

"Hmmm?"

"Next weekend, when I go to Lima to see my dad…will you come with me?"

Adam swallowed. Meet Burt Hummel? Was he ready for that? The idea made him very nervous, but as he looked down at Kurt in his arms, he knew there was only one answer.

"Of course."

"Good. Just in case Blaine gets any ideas."