Kurt squeezed his eyes closed a little harder and turned over in his bed. The noises were nothing unusual. The occasional voice or bang or siren was all part of the charm of Bushwick, but Rachel was at Brody's and even though she'd be less than useless in the event of a break-in, it was always just nice not being alone. He'd been excited to have the place to himself for once, making the most of the pristine kitchen and dancing and singing while he cooked, but now there was a chill in the air and a cloying silence in the apartment that somehow overpowered the noise outside.

He shifted again, huddling under his quilt.

If I go to sleep now, I'll get seven hours before I have to get up.

If I go to sleep now, I'll get six hours and forty-five minutes.

If I go-

He heard a rattling. His eyes snapped open. Silence again.

He had to be imagining things. Even in Lima he used to get paranoid in an empty house. He scooted down under the duvet. It was probably nothing.

He heard another rattle, louder this time, and he knew it was coming from the front door. There was really someone there. He wanted to curl into a ball and disappear until they'd come in and taken what they wanted and run away, but he realised he was sliding out of bed and into the kitchen, where he grabbed a spatula and started creeping towards the door.

He could hear two voices, surprisingly small and nervous-sounding, but there were still more of them than there were of him. Without taking his eyes off the door (which was being wiggled a little too easily for his liking), hereached behind him for the light switch. As soon as the room filled with light, he heard a 'fuck, fuck, go!' from outside and heard a scuffle of feet as the invaders ran away. They could easily have been just a couple of kids seizing the opportunity of a seemingly empty apartment. But they could have been armed. They easily could have freaked out on him. Worse, they could've been big evil villains waiting to pounce on a vulnerable young boy. He was a man now, obviously, an adult with a job and everything, but he felt like a little kid who'd had a nightmare and he couldn't even run into his dad's room.

He could've gotten hurt.

Shit. Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit shit.

The sounds of the street and the creepy hush of the building were all drowned out by his heartbeat in his ears and the tight twist in his chest and the clang of the spatula when he dropped it on the floor. He took a shaky breath, looking around him just in case there was someone there he hadn't seen. He didn't know if he waschecking for a thief or anyone to see how scared he was or just someone to tell him it was safe. He half wanted to be alone to prove he could handle it, but he needed someone. Anyone.

Well, not just anyone.

"Kurt?"

Kurt puffed out a sigh of relief. His whole body relaxed instantly just hearing that soft, smooth voice.

He was so relieved he forgot to reply.

"Kurt?" Blaine asked again, "Are you okay?"

"Oh. Mmm."

The voice on the other end got more concerned.

"Is something wrong? Has something happened? Kurt, talk to me, you're scaring me."

Kurt closed his eyes and smiled. Of course he'd still be so cute and worried. Typical.

"Did I wake you up?"

"It doesn't matter. What's wrong?"

"Well, it seems silly now. Nothing really happened."

"I don't like the sound of that 'really'. Tell me."

Kurt bit his lip. He really didn't want to make him panic. He'd just needed to hear a friendly voice.

"It's just… There was a break-in-"

"What? Kurt-"

"No, no, Blaine, they didn't get in. I turned the lights on and they ran away. I think it was just a couple of kids or something. I'm being an idiot."

"Oh my God, Kurt, are you okay? You must be freaking out. Where's Rachel? You're sure they're gone? Have you called the police?"

"I'm not calling the police because someone rattled my door. Rachel's with Brody. And I'm- I'm fine."

He rubbed a hand over his face. He shouldn't have hesitated. He could just picture Blaine falling out of bed trying to figure out a way he could help.

"Can I do something?" Called it. "I could, um, I could come see you?"

A couple of months ago he would have laughed, but now he just smiled. He was all for kind gestures, but flying to New York for one night would be overkill.

"No, Blaine, I'll be fine. I swear. Can you just… talk to me? For a little while?"

"Uh… sure. Okay. Um. What do you want to talk about?"

"Everything. School. Glee club. Being president."

"You remembered."

"Are you kidding? I'm- I was the first first gentleman of McKinley. Just another thing Michelle Obama and I have in common."

Blaine giggled.

"Everyone loves a power couple, right?"

"Yeah."

There was a pause. It wasn't awkward so much as apologetic.

"Well, there are a couple of new study groups for seniors to help them organise their time instead of a load of last-minute cramming."

"Good idea. I know a couple of people who could've used that a year ago."

"Yeah. But one of them's still here to make the most of it now. I really want her to pass this year, Kurt. If she gets left behind again, I-"

"She won't. It sounds like she's got more support this year. At least now people actually know how bad things had gotten. What else is happening?"

Blaine told him he was starting his college applications. He was still planning on coming to New York, much to Kurt's relief. He was glad that really was Blaine's dream too, that he wasn't just doing it for him. And he knew how much he was going to love it, no matter what happened with them.

Blaine asked about Vogue, but Kurt didn't feel like talking about it. He slipped back into bed and listened intently while Blaine told him about the million different clubs he was in and which songs everyone was working on for Glee club and how Marley had been doing since Sectionals and how hard Finn was trying to step up to the plate. He told him he was struggling with an English paper and Kurt made suggestions at how he could get through it and smiled when he heard him clambering around his room to write them down before he forgot. Kurt learned Artie and Sugar were dating and that although not everyone was okay with it, Unique was wearing a sparkly pink smile to school. He was relieved to hear that Blaine had been hanging out with Sam a lot and he had really been helping him figure stuff out. That sounded just like Sam. Kurt made a mental note to thank him next time he was home.

Blaine must have asked 'Are you sure this isn't boring?' at least five times, but Kurt couldn't think of anything else he'd rather be listening to. He fell asleep smiling, his phone tucked between his ear and the pillow, squeezing his blanket between his fingers and pretending it was Blaine's could tell he was out cold from the lack of 'uh-huh's on the other end of the phone, but he didn't hang up for a while. He took a minute to listen to Kurt's breathing, looking at the space next to him in his bed. He stroked the empty pillow with the back of his hand and smiled.

Tonight he'd made Kurt feel safe. Maybe he'd never be back here, smiling next to him, but he knew next year he'd at least have a friend waiting for him in New York.