Disclaimer: This story is for non-profit use and reader's enjoyment only. All creative rights concerning Glee, it's characters and any lyrics quoted here belong to their original creator(s)/artist(s).

"The greatest gift you can give another is the purity of your attention." - Richard Moss

"Don't listen to their words, fix your attention on their deeds." - Albert Einstein

Blaine had always been a very perceptive guy. He noticed quirks and odds in people's character often very early in their acquaintance, and he was particularly emphatic when it came to people he liked. Not that most of his friends were complicated or hard to read, but he was usually the first to notice when someone was up to something.

For some reason, this became even more apparent after he had met Kurt. Even though the youngest Warbler was reserved and didn't feel comfortable at all when he was forced talk about his feelings, Blaine never had many difficulties to understand what was going on inside Kurt's mind.

A small voice inside Blaine's head kept telling him this was because he paid much more attention to Kurt than he ever had to his other friends, but so far Blaine had been successfully ignoring this voice. He blamed the fact that Kurt had gone through the same experiences as he had back at his old school, and that he therefore could relate to him very easily.

When he first met Kurt, he instantly noticed that the boy was struggling. Back then he couldn't tell exactly what kind of struggle the younger boy was facing, but the difficulties he had to go through were written all over his face.

Later, when Blaine learned about the whole story, he understood very quickly that there were underlying reasons for Kurt's overall sadness. It wasn't just the fact that he was bullied at school, it was much more than that: never having friends that really acknowledged his inner struggles, his constant fear of not being able to make his father proud, never having experienced the feeling of being loved by someone who wasn't his family, not even being able to discuss things that were so important to him (like fashion, musicals or even gay rights) with someone who was truly interested in all that too; even him still missing his mother so very, very much.

Blaine understood most of it and he was glad that he could help the boy he had grown so fond of in such a short time with some of these things – but all in all, it was the bullying and ignorance at his school that stopped Kurt from being happy.

It had gotten better after Kurt transferred to Dalton Academy. Blaine noticed how often he saw him smiling now, how often he laughed and joked with the other students. Kurt was truly happy – at least Blaine thought so.

It took him some time to understand that this wasn't the case.

Granted, Kurt tried to be happy here, and he put some effort in letting go off all the things that had bothered him at his old life.

But he didn't quite succeed in it.

Blaine noticed this first during an uneventful lunch, when someone dropped a glass and plate, scattering food and cullet all over the floor. Everyone in the room flinched, but Kurt practically jumped up from his seat. Blaine spotted the frantic, panic-stricken look in his eyes only for a moment before the boy realized that there was no immediate danger around. But Blaine also noticed that his hands were still shaking slightly as he continued to eat.

After that, Blaine starting paying even more attention to Kurt and it didn't took very long until he noticed things that were similar to Kurt's reaction at lunchtime. Every time there was a loud noise – a door being slammed, a book being dropped – Kurt flinched and looked around, like he was expecting someone to punch him any second. And from what he had told Blaine, he had every reason to anticipate something like this.

Even when Blaine surprised him with his rehearsal of "Baby, it's cold outside", Kurt had looked up at him with fear in his eyes, turning into a relieved laughter when he noticed that Blaine was no one to be afraid of.

It wasn't until one evening in mid-February that Blaine understood how on edge Kurt really was.

The event occurred after Warbler practice. Blaine had stayed longer with some of the other boys to rehearse some parts of a possible number for Regionals. He was the last to leave the room. When he passed the hallway he noticed his favourite Warbler standing there, obviously lost in thought while looking at one of the announcements that were pinned at the old bulletin board.

Blaine hadn't had much exercise in tiptoeing since he had been a little boy, playing Hide and Seek with his sister and his cousin, but now he did everything he could to approach the younger boy as soundlessly as possible. When he was only standing centimeters away from Kurt he tackled him from behind.

Kurt shrieked higher than Blaine had ever heard somebody scream in his life and desperately fought against the arm Blaine had wrapped around him, which only resulted in Blaine tightening his grip, bringing the boy closer to his chest.

"Calm down, it's just me," he said, partly amused and partly shocked by Kurt's extreme reaction. It took the younger boy a moment to stop struggling. Blaine felt the pulse beneath his hand beat at a frantic pace.

"You almost gave me a heart-attack," Kurt said breathlessly after a second. Blaine chuckled. "I noticed."

He loosened his grip only a bit, bringing one arm down around Kurt's waist while the other grabbed the younger boy's hand, interlacing their fingers.

"I didn't expect anybody to be around here at that time," Kurt said after a moment, leaning against Blaine's chest.

"Well, we only have six minutes until curfew," Blaine agreed. He felt Kurt struggling in his embrace, asking: "Then we better should get to our dorms, right?"

Blaine only held tight. "Do you mind?" he asked.

"Do I mind what?"

"This," said Blaine, letting go of Kurt's fingers to let his arm join the one already tight around his waist. Kurt's arms slowly settled upon his. "No. Actually, I don't," said Kurt, and even though he was so close, Blaine almost didn't understand the soft words. He smiled.

"Well, it's worth the short moment of shock when something good comes out of it, right?"

"That's the tricky thing about shock – you don't quite know whether what's happening is good or bad."

Blaine nodded, leaned forward and said: "I promise you one thing: here, only something good will happen."

It wasn't until then he felt Kurt fully relax into his arms. And he was very sorry that he couldn't see the younger boy's face when he answered: "I'll keep that in mind."

This was the evening Blaine understood that even though Kurt was moderately happy at Dalton, he still didn't feel at home here. The realization that this was a place he was really safe at had not sunken in yet. And at this precise moment, while holding Kurt in his arms and listening to his breath becoming even again, Blaine set his mind to help Kurt getting used to his new home as quickly as possible.

Whatever that took.

I originally planned this as a multi-chaptered story (the second chapter is also almost finished, and it's way more funny and than this piece of fluff) with this kinda being the prologue, but I think I first need to watch the Valentine's Episode… if it doesn't totally upset me (that means, if the KLAINE-part doesn't cause me to yell at things/people) I might continue with this story, even if it's becoming AU-ish. I don't care. I like the pink bubble inside my head in which Blaine courts Kurt and they become a couple and live happily ever after...

But anyway, I felt like sharing the first chapter, at least. =D

Please tell me what you thought about it.

~ Nalasan