A/N I was going to post a different one shot story this week, but it's not finished yet. Been rewatching a couple of episodes so I don't miss the finer details. So in the meantime, I decided to write the first chapter of this story that has been going through my head for a while. It's an A/U story, where Kurt and Blaine don't meet at Dalton, but rather meet outside school/Glee. This takes place during SLS. Hope you like it.

The Scarf

He was such an idiot.

He couldn't believe he had done that. It was so humiliating. He didn't know what was worse, being rejected, or having his friends witness it. He never should have talked them into helping him. They'd tried to talk him out of it, tried to convince him to wait and see if Jeremiah felt the same about him at the very least. But he'd fooled himself into thinking it was love.

He realized now that wasn't true. He hadn't really been in love with Jeremiah. He just didn't want to be alone on Valentine's Day.

Yet here he sat, all alone, at the Lima Bean, staring at a cold cup of coffee, more miserable than ever.

"Excuse me?" Blaine looked up at the voice and found himself looking into the most amazing pair of eyes he had ever seen. "Hi, I'm sorry to bother you, but I was sitting at this table earlier, and I think I left my scarf here. Is it on that chair beside you?"

Blaine looked at the empty seat, and indeed there was a cerulean scarf that almost matched the blue in the boy's eyes. "Oh, yes, here."

The pale boy took it with a thanks, eyeing Blaine's blazer. "Is that a Dalton Academy blazer?"

He smiled. "Yes, I go to Dalton. I'm Blaine, by the way."

"I'm Kurt. Do you like Dalton? I hear the classes are really hard there."

He shrugged. "They are a bit more hardcore than public school, but they are manageable if you put in the effort."

Kurt nodded. "I hear they have an amazing Glee club, too."

Blaine's smile widened. "The Warblers, yes. They're like rock stars."

Kurt smiled. "They tied with New Directions at Sectionals, though."

"Do you go to McKinley?"

Kurt laughed. "Guilty."

"Are you in New Directions? I don't recall seeing you at sectionals."

A frown crossed the taller boy's face. "I was supposed to have a solo, but I was in the hospital the day of the competition." His face brightened a little as he smirked teasingly. "We'd have beaten you fair and square if I had been there."

Blaine laughed good naturedly. "Is that so? Well, you'll have to prove it to me at Regionals."

Another pained look crossed the boy's face. "If I'm still at McKinley then. My Dad is actually thinking of transferring me to Dalton."

"Oh? Why's that?"

"It's kind of a long story." Kurt looked almost fearful.

"Why don't you sit down and tell me about? I'll buy you a coffee."

…

Kurt hesitated. He hadn't told anyone the whole truth about what had happened, not even his Dad. He wanted to tell his friends in New Directions, but he knew how they would react. Puck and Santana would go ballistic, and probably get themselves kicked out of school, or in Puck's case, sent back to juvie. Mercedes and Tina would go all protective momma on him and smother him. He didn't want that for any of them. But he needed to talk to someone, he didn't want to keep it all bottled up.

Blaine seemed like a nice guy, even though he'd been lost in thought and looking a little upset himself when Kurt had first approached him. Maybe it would be good for both of them. He could distract the cute boy from whatever had him down, and get the whole thing off his own chest at the same time.

"I'd like that, I think."

Blaine smiled kindly at him, and took his coffee order, going to the counter to refresh his own medium drip as well. Kurt watched him discreetly as he sat and considered how much he could really tell this boy he hardly knew. Would it bother the other boy if Kurt admitted that he was gay? Could he tell what happened without telling that part? It was the reason the incident happened in the first place, after all. Oh well, he'd just have to see how the boy reacted. If he got upset, Kurt could always just repay him for the coffee and leave.

He glanced up and smiled his thanks as the other boy set the grande non-fat mocha in front of him.

"So, tell me the story of Kurt." Blaine smiled.

Kurt studied his face for a moment, and decided just to rip the bandage off, so to speak. "I'm the only openly gay kid at my school." He paused, waiting for the dark haired boy's reaction. Blaine just smiled again and nodded. Reassured, Kurt continued.

"I've always been teased about it, and about my voice and the way I dress. At first it was rough, but I could handle it. When I joined Glee club, the teasing got worse, but then it didn't matter, because I had friends who appreciated me for me."

He paused to take a drink, recalling those first weeks after joining New Directions. "We didn't always get along in the club. At first things were kind of rocky, a lot of drama and in fighting. But when things got bad outside the club, we became closer, more like a family. A seriously dysfunctional family, but still, I knew they would be there when I needed them. And they were. But there was this one Neanderthal who made it his life's mission to put me through hell."

He had to stop again and take a few deep breathes. His hands were shaking, and he put them under the table. "At first it was just the usual, homophobic taunts, nothing I hadn't heard before. But when those didn't seem to phase me anymore, he began to get physical, bumping in to me in the hallways, knocking books out of my hands. Nothing he could get suspended for. Then came the shoves into the lockers. The first time it happened, I reported him for it, but he just claimed that he tripped, and the teachers said there was nothing they could do about it."

Blaine reached into his pocket and pulled out a clean handkerchief, handing it to Kurt, who hadn't even realized he was crying. He wiped his eyes carefully, and handed it back. "After that the shoves and the slushie facials became more frequent. My friends tried to stand up for me, but he wouldn't stop. One day I just got so fed up, I followed him into the locker room to confront him. I remember shouting at him, telling him how pathetic he was, that he just couldn't stand how ordinary he was. I don't remember everything else I said, but something made him snap. I thought he was going to beat the crap out of me, but instead, he...he..."

Blaine reached over and took his hand. "What did he do?" He asked softly.

"He kissed me."

…

Kurt's voice was so low, Blaine almost didn't hear him. When the words did register, he had to fight down the surge of anger that welled up inside him. He didn't understand where it came from, but he shook it off. Kurt was very vulnerable right now. He didn't know the pale boy well, but he could tell that he really needed to talk to someone about this.

"What did you do?"

Kurt shook his head. "I was in shock, I just stood there in denial, until he moved to try and kiss me again. I think I shouted no, or maybe I just shook my head, I can't remember. He was so angry. He punched the locker beside me and stormed off."

"Did you tell anyone what happened?"

Kurt shook his head again. "I couldn't. My dad had just gotten out of the hospital after having a heart attack. I didn't want him to get upset. And I didn't want to tell my friends for multiple reasons, including the fact that I couldn't just out him that way."

"Why not? It would have made your life easier." Blaine thought it was noble of the pale boy to not want to out someone who was so obviously confused, but it sounded like there was more to the story.

Kurt shrugged. "I wouldn't do that, not even to my worst enemy. Besides, the next day he threatened me. He told me he'd kill me if I told anyone."

Blaine felt a chill go down his spine at the casual way the other boy mentioned the death threat. "Kurt, you should have told about the threat at least. You didn't have to tell them why he threatened you."

The boy nodded. "I would have, but my Dad was getting married. I decided to wait until after he and Carole left for their honeymoon, so that it wouldn't ruin the wedding. They left the day before Sectionals. That night I was going to tell New Directions what happened and then talk to the police."

Blaine didn't like the awful thoughts forming in his mind. Something had happened that night that put Kurt in the hospital. "He did something, didn't he?"

Kurt nodded, his eyes unfocused. "I was walking to my car after school. I was going to meet up with everyone at Rachel's house. He came out of no where, slamming me into the side of my car. He was furious. Some how he knew I was going to tell. At first he just punched me around a little, but then he..."

Oh god, Blaine recognized that look. He'd seen it once before when he'd had to stop by his Dad's law office once. The elder Anderson had been taking a victim's statement. He'd only glanced at the girl for a moment, but Kurt had that same look in his eyes.

"It's ok, Kurt. You don't have to talk about that if you don't want to."

Those amazing eyes looked up at him, and then he blinked, and forced that victimized look off his face. Blaine could see the determination there. Kurt took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "He started touching me. Fondling me. He was trying to convince me that we didn't have to tell anyone. That we could date in secret, that he was really my only option anyway, and that it would be better for me if I just agreed to be his secret boyfriend."

Kurt swallowed hard. "I tried pushing him away, told him I despised him and would never willingly be with him. He shoved me hard. I hit my head, blacked out. Mercedes found me a short while latter. When I woke up in the hospital, I told them I'd tripped and hit my head."

The silence that followed was thick. Blaine wasn't sure how to respond at first. "Kurt, you do know that none of what happened was your fault, right? You're not responsible for his actions. He made his choice. You need to think about what's best for you. It sounds like your friends really care about you. You should tell them the truth. They'll still love you."

Kurt sniffed again, and nodded. "I just don't want them to do something they'll regret. Puck would end up in juvie if he got in trouble. And Santana is likely to cause bodily harm if she finds out. I don't want them to get in trouble for trying to protect me or defending my honor. And I can't tell my Dad. He knows I've been being bullied, that's why he's thinking of sending me to Dalton. The only reason he hasn't so far is the tuition. But if he finds out what really happened, he'd go insane, and probably have another heart attack."

Kurt glanced out the window, then blinked at the darkness. "Crap, it's late. I was supposed to be home early to help Carole make dinner."

Blaine reached into his bag and pulled out a pen, grabbing the unused napkin beside his coffee. "Here, let me give you my phone number if you want to talk some more. And I can email you some information on scholarships for Dalton if you'd like."

Kurt smiled as he took the napkin and stood. "Thanks, Blaine. I really did need someone to talk to. By the way, I meant to ask, why were you looking so glum when I came in?"

Blaine smiled goofily. "Oh, it was nothing really. I just made a bad decision earlier today that ended up making me look bad in front of my friends."

Kurt nodded. "Well, someone recently told me that your friends will still love you, no matter what."

Blaine laughed and watched the pale skinned boy walk away.

…

A/N I hope you all enjoy this. I'll post more to it over the next week or so. Please leave a review.