Warnings/Spoilers: homophobia, badly researched WW2 and 1930s/40s history, possible mentions of consented sex, and character death. Also one or two OC's that don't play too big a part.

September 1935

It's a Tuesday in September when Blaine finds himself standing up to Phillip Lester, the school bully, for a boy he doesn't know. The small boy is hunched in on himself and his eyes glisten with tears that threaten to fall out. Phillip, with his angry pinched face stands over him, tall and intimidating. Phillip is eleven, just like Blaine, but looking at him you would never guess. He's tall, bulky, and aggressive. Phillip spends most of his time terrorizing other kids; so seeing him looming over someone isn't foreign. Some kids watch from a distance as Phillip yells at the chubby-cheeked boy.

"Look at you, you're such a girl!" Phillip says in disgust. "A pansy little faggot. I bet-"

"Stop it, Phillip" Blaine interrupts. He doesn't remember opening his mouth in the first place. Phillip turns to stare at Blaine, his eyes angry, and full of hatred for whoever decided to butt in. Blaine does his best to stand tall and confident.

"What did you say to me?" Phillip says, turning from the cowering boy to walk towards Blaine.

"I told you to leave him alone" Blaine states, his voice unwavering. Phillip's in his personal space now. He looks right at Blaine as if daring him to do something. Blaine stares back, eyes slanting with challenge. Phillip looks away first.

"I don't need this" Phillip spits, slinking away. Blaine waits until Phillip is far in the distance before turning to look at the boy, who has successfully rubbed away any hint of tears. There's still redness in his cheeks, which Blaine thinks might be embarrassment.

"I'm sorry he was bullying you" Blaine apologizes

"It's fine, I'm used to it. Thank you for defending me though. You didn't have to do that." The boy replies, his body straightened and confident. If it were not for the redness in his pale face, Blaine would think he had made the last few minutes up in his mind. "I'm not usually such a baby, I think he just caught me off guard." Blaine's stunned by the boy, who seems like almost a completely different person then the one who had been risking tears. He turns to walk away when Blaine sticks out his arm.

"I'm Blaine" The boy hesitantly takes Blaine's hand in his own and firmly shakes it.

"Kurt"

Suddenly one of the teachers is ringing the bell and yelling for everybody to get to class and Kurt snaps back to reality.

"I'll see you around" Blaine says before jogging into the school. He doesn't miss the look of shock on Kurt's face. In class, Blaine can't seem to focus, his thoughts always going back to Kurt. How the boy had responded to Blaine with reluctance and weariness, like he thought Blaine would rescue him only to throw Kurt in the fire himself. Blaine thinks back to what Phillip had called Kurt. Blaine wasn't one hundred percent sure on the meaning but it was a word his father used when stories came on the news, or as he read the morning paper at breakfast. It was something he spat with disgust, like it was poisonous, so Blaine knew that it wasn't a very nice thing to say or be. Soon Blaine's teacher is dismissing the class and so Blaine stops thinking about Kurt and packs up his books.

At dinner, Blaine pushes his food around his plate. He mashes the carrots and stirs them into the potatoes and gravy. His glass of water sits untouched. If Blaine's parents notice they don't say anything, instead his dad complains about whatever it is that has come to his mind. Right now he's discussing which of his employees he had to lay off this time. Blaine's father, Gregory Anderson, is the owner and boss of Anderson Co., a local business firm.

"I'm glad I did too, lazy incompetent asshole. When I gave him the slip he started crying like a girl," the older Anderson says. Blaine notices the way his fathers nose scrunches in disgust, and the way he says 'girl' like Blaine says 'homework'. "Told him to get the hell out of my building. Not my fault times are tough, it's that goddamn Roosevelt whose getting everyone fired." His father continues his rant, and Blaine zones out; he's heard his father's complaints of Franklin Roosevelt one too many times. They're repetitive boring, and often involve blaming the president for the countries debt. Whatever that is. Blaine doesn't care either way, as far as he can tell it isn't affecting his father, minus the inconvenience of laying people off, so why he's complaining Blaine doesn't know. At least they aren't living like that one kid in Blaine's class, Sam Evans, who Blaine has seen in lines for the soup kitchen more than once, and who wears the same ratty T-Shirt everyday.

When dinner is done, Blaine helps his mother do the dishes then trudges up to his room. He puts on his Tommy Dorsey record and flops onto his bed. His mind flips back to Kurt, and the way he blinked back his tears like nothing. The way Kurt's wavered as he told Blaine he was used to being picked on. Blaine draws the conclusion that Kurt hasn't had many friends before. Blaine hasn't either. A light bulb goes off in his mind and by the time Blaine dozes off he has an idea on how to change that.

When Blaine gets to school the next day, he immediately looks for Kurt. He eventually finds the boy curled under a willow tree reading a book. Leaves surround Kurt, and Blaine has to push a few out of the way to sit beside him. The rustling makes Kurt look up at Blaine, and instantly Kurt's shoulders stiffen.

"What are you reading?" Blaine asks. Kurt dog-ears his page and shuts his book.

"Just because you helped me with one bully, doesn't make us best friends" Kurt snaps. Blaine is taken back by the harshness edging Kurt's voice. He thinks back to yesterday and how fearful Kurt had seemed. Sitting in front of him now was like sitting in front of someone entirely different. Which seemed silly. Blaine barely knew the kid at all and to already come to conclusions about Kurt was dumb. Yet, looking at Kurt he could see that his lip quivered slightly. It was obvious that he was afraid that Blaine would hurt him.

"I know" Blaine finally replies

"Then why are you talking to me?" Kurt asks. Blaine, for a second wonders himself why he feels so drawn to Kurt and why he's so eager to befriend him.

"You seem lonely" Blaine answers truthfully.

"Just because I don't have people surrounding me, doesn't mean I'm lonely" Kurt scoffs. That hits a little too close to home for Blaine. It's the exact thing he's said to his parents time and time again. Blaine's never had many friends, sure the boys liked him just fine and the girls always give him shy glances but Blaine hasn't really talked to them outside of school. Instead he spends time alone, working on model cars and listening to Fred Astaire on the record player his father had bought him. He knows that his parents wish that he would go to birthday parties, and sleepovers but frankly Blaine likes having time to his self. He has never really felt lonely, but now there's something in him egging him to befriend Kurt. A part of his brain telling him that he can't be lonely forever. Maybe Kurt feels the same way because when Blaine finally answers,

"I just thought that maybe we could be friends. I don't really have any either." Kurt's gaze softens slightly, and he relaxes his shoulders. Blaine's lips upturn softly, and Kurt returns it slightly.

"Yeah, okay" Kurt says setting his book beside him. Conversation doesn't flow quiet as easy as Blaine was hoping it would- but at least they end up talking. By the time one of the teachers is calling the kids inside, Kurt's posture is completely relaxed. Blaine doesn't want to get up from his spot beside Kurt but he knows that if he stays under the tree that there will be consequences. The day has been pretty good so far and Blaine doesn't want to ruin it by getting the strap. Blaine brushes dirt off his britches.

"I'll see you later Kurt" Blaine says, waving goodbye. Kurt waves back with a wide smile.