So, there are a few promises that I have to make. First, although Kurt is going to get much sicker he will get better, second this is not a story where Kurt dies, third, I promise Klaine will not break up. Okay and now for some truth, I really really appreciate reviews, they make me realize which fics are worth continuing and if a fic has a lot of reviews on its last chapter that is one that I am going to continuously and constantly update, it makes sense to me. So, finally and most importantly, I hope you enjoy this.

Night Shadow

#1: Bills Bills Bills

Kurt Hummel had HIV.

God, why was that still so hard to accept, why was it hard to accept that because of the screwed up clinic he had been to when he felt that the flu was killing him that a nurse had used an extremely dirty needle to give him the shot. A needle that had only been used by one other person, but a person who had AIDS.

God, what kind of a hospital was that. Kurt had been so sick he hadn't really thought that going to a hospital more than twenty minutes away from Bushwick was the best thing to do and during that time Blaine had been so incredibly busy that he didn't want to bother him. Blaine's work with June was what he needed to concentrate on, or at least it used to be. Kurt hadn't heard Blaine talk about June for a while. Even after they had sung 'American Boy', Kurt had to pressure Blaine to put himself first some of the time and because of this he had risked his life.

In fact it felt as if he was losing his life.

They had had the apartment to themselves for three months now, Rachel wasn't having the perfect pilot in Los Angeles but it still appeared on the air, broadcast late on Saturday nights when nothing of any value seemed to be on. Kurt still made sure to catch every episode, but shortly after Rachel had moved out, Kurt had gotten sick. A month later this illness had been detected and he had refused to have sex with Blaine.

A month after that it had progressed and become worse and even the doctors were surprised at how much Kurt's body was rejecting the treatment, but that didn't seem to be the only thing going wrong. Even though Kurt still concentrated on NYADA and doing his work, Blaine had taken fewer and fewer classes until he had asked Carmen Tibideaux if he could take a semester off. Carmen had not only given him special permission to do this, but she had approached Kurt herself and asked if he wanted to do that.

Kurt felt that one day he would conquer this, he would overcome the pain and the illness that was wrecking his fiancee, and at that time he would regret missing the classes.

He had done his best to persuade Blaine to stay in the school, persuaded him to consider his options, but all of that consideration had only been followed by Blaine dropping out and trying to make things work for Kurt. As much as Kurt hated and felt guilty for what was happening, Blaine now spent his life making sure Kurt was okay and happy.

It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair for either of them.

The full settlement that the hospital had promised him was taking a long time to come to him, but at least they had paid for his treatment thus far. He would always come in with a cheque book, but so far they had told him that the matter of payment had been settled. At least he should be thankful for that.

Over the past month and a half, Kurt had noticed that a lot of his fiancee's comic books and designer outfits had suddenly gone missing. He appreciated the fact that Blaine had told him the reason was so that he could make room for all the things Kurt would need, he appreciated Blaine looking out for him even more than all the gifts that Blaine had been buying him lately. He didn't want Blaine to make all these sacrifices for him, they would manage, when the full settlement had come in they would manage.

Kurt knew that Blaine was selling these items on eBay, he knew that a sliver of the profit went towards charities for people who suffered from AIDS, but his partner always refused to answer questions about them. Kurt was losing weight, he constantly coughed and felt dizzy, and he had to spend so many days resting in bed that it sometimes felt stupid to go to classes at NYADA at all, but he wouldn't give up on his dreams. He couldn't, not after how much he had suffered through high school.

Even though Blaine would have better things to do, he always either attended hospital (a good one in Manhattan that Kurt was positive was expensive) visits with Kurt or he waited outside and got advice from Kurt's (highly skilled) doctor. Plastered all over the walls of the apartment were diet and exercise recommendations and on the counters shopping lists and magazines that Blaine had subscribed to. Occasionally there was a Versache scarf or a designer sweater or cardigan waiting for Kurt with a note that Blaine had delicately pinned to it.

Kurt appreciated all of this, it felt so good to be loved, but it felt horrible that he didn't want to kiss Blaine on the mouth or sleep too close to him. Kurt had refused to even let Blaine spoon him at first and then they had found out that as long as they were fully clothed it wouldn't spread to his love (who had been given a clean bill of health despite Kurt's continual want to have sex before he was diagnosed).

As Kurt returned from his internship, where Isabelle was extremely understanding, he heard a whimpering from the bedroom.

He sped up his pace and went to the bedroom, slowly pushing the door open to catch Blaine in fetal position sobbing to himself. His partner was wearing leather pants and a black turtle neck, he looked so sexy in this, but maybe that was a way of Blaine coping and helping himself feel better. Blaine was so so attractive, but Kurt knew he was breaking. There was no other way of seeing this.

Kurt rushed towards Blaine and sat in front of him, reaching out and gently placing a hand on Blaine's upper arm, "Honey?" he asked in complete surprise, Blaine never cried in front of him anymore. Despite the fact that Kurt realized that this was killing him, Blaine seemed to think that it was okay not to express his feelings.

As Kurt peered at Blaine's face though he noticed that there was running mascara on Blaine's face and his hair was wild and messy as if much much less gel had been added. He looked so hot, but Kurt knew that this must be a coping mechanism. Blaine had changed on the outside, but he was still the same Blaine that Kurt had always known on the inside.

As soon as Blaine managed to see him through his tear filled eyes, he sat up as quick as he could and stood, turning his back on Kurt. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he choked, "I shouldn't be crying, I'm really really sorry Kurt."

"It's okay honey, I know how much this is affecting you," Kurt replied in complete honesty but Blaine still kept his back turned.

"I shouldn't be crying, I won't let myself hurt you anymore. I love you Kurt," he said in despair, hanging his head, "I love you so much."

—-

Eighty minutes earlier

Blaine clutched his phone tightly in his hand, he knew that Kurt was at his internship for at least another hour. That gave him enough time to get his job done without Kurt figuring it out. He played with his tongue ring, something Kurt didn't really know about since Kurt would never kiss him anymore and made sure his eye liner was okay as well as the mascara. He had to keep a kind of gothic feel about him, this Brooklyn bar was somewhere they would appreciate the rock and roll vibe, especially as he sang for them.

He took deep breaths as he remained on the phone, "Hello, this is Blaine Anderson, I'm Kurt Hummel's partner and I just need to know if the cheque cleared on his recent treatment and on the prescribed medication." He waited before a weak smile appeared on his face, "Are you sure it did? Are you sure you can keep this information confidential from him?" He took a deep breath, "Thank you very much."

He hung up as a man who looked slightly like Elliot did entered the back room where Blaine was.

"Eric are you ready to go on stage?" the man asked as Blaine looked at his black hair, but different from Elliot's hair were the blonde highlights and along his ear were many studs. He wasn't a singer like Blaine so he didn't make as much money.

"Y-Yeah," Blaine nodded. He hated his job, he absolutely hated what kind of a performer he was and he was pretty sure that Kurt would hate him for it as well. Still Kurt and Kurt's treatment was the reason that he did this and that was good enough.

"Let's give them a real show tonight, Eric." the other man, Danny, said as he slipped on his designer leather jacket.

Blaine nodded nervously, he was revolted by himself.

As he heard the music play up he messed up his hair a little more and managed to use the gel to have it look like the first party he had enjoyed with The New Directions, the party where he had kissed Rachel.

Danny and Sean entered the stage together as Venom and Cobra. Then it was Blaine's turn to enter, somehow this worked better in groups of three, Sam had told him that from his personal experience.

"And now ladies and gentlemen, as always our dark prince, the singer you've all come to love, Night's Shadow." There was the sound of the gay men chattering together including some ladies who were either bisexual or friends with the men who came. Blaine took a deep breath before putting on his smoldering look and walked out as he started dancing to the music.

He hated this, he detested using his performance skills like this.

As the beat started getting louder and the announcer yelled some words that were directed at the sex crazed audience, Blaine knew it was the part he absolutely hated and he threw his scarf for that evening into the audience as a couple of girls started to fight over it. He slid his pants off to reveal his very tight boxers and then dropped his shirt onto the stage.

Blaine Devon Anderson was a very popular stripper, it was the only way to pay for Kurt's treatment after all.

He stepped out on the stage, sliding onto the floor and doing some more technical moves as he felt money being thrust into these boxers and rubbing against his skin. He didn't want this money, he didn't want to earn it this way, but his first priority was Kurt and his health. He didn't want to risk losing a single thing that would make Kurt feel better.