Disclaimer: Glee is not under my ownership.

After glee club that day, Ari and Kurt walked down the hallway towards the front entrance, where they would then go their separate ways. Kurt to his shiny, black Navigator, and Ari to Paul in his Dodge Stratus.

Kurt remained in his cheery mood from the previous day, still glowing with delight from meeting Blaine. Ari's jealousy aside, she was glad that Kurt now had someone to directly relate to. She knew that the begrudging feelings she had were selfish, because Kurt was getting the help he truly needed. But Ari couldn't help but feel completely useless—her boyfriend constantly reminded her that she wasn't good enough for him, Rachel could easily carry the glee club with or without her, and now Kurt had found someone else to vent to. Which would probably lead to a replacement for coffee dates, shopping trips and sleepovers. Blaine Anderson, Kurt's savior and hero, was bringing out an ugly side of Ari that she wished she didn't have. Or perhaps, it was making her realize the truth of her worthlessness.

Timed practically perfectly, Kurt's phone buzzed, and he paused his confident stride to read his new text. Ari shamelessly looked over the screen to read it, knowing Kurt wouldn't mind.

To: Kurt Hummel

From: Blaine Anderson

Courage.

Ari didn't even have a chance to scoff at the words on the screen. Just as quickly as she had looked at the text, the phone was shoved out of Kurt's hands, and Kurt was thrown into the lockers against the wall. As soon as Ari got over her initial shock, she saw that it had been Dave Karofsky who had just shoved Kurt, who was now glaring at Kurt as he spun around and stomped away. Turning her attention towards Kurt, who was slumped on the floor with a furious expression across his pale features, Ari quickly stepped towards him and offered him her hand. Fuming, he ignored her hand and stood up by himself, his angry blue eyes now mixed with something else—determination. Without a word towards Ari and not even bothering to pick up his cell phone, he advanced in the same direction Karofsky had gone, shouting after him.

Bending down quickly to pick up Kurt's phone, Ari raced after Kurt, not liking where this was going.

"Kurt! What are you doing?" She yelled, jogging to keep up with Kurt's swift pace.

"What I should have done the first time that ham hock called me a fag," Kurt spat, quickening his stride. I realized Kurt was heading in the direction of the boy's locker room, where Karofsky had presumably gone to get ready for football practice. I shuddered, not wanting Kurt to go anywhere near him.

"No, Kurt! Don't do this! You're going to get hurt," Ari pleaded, latching her fingers around his arm in her weak attempt to hold him back.

He stopped walking and stared at Ari, the determined look on his face telling her that there was nothing she could do to stop him. "It doesn't matter what he does to me, Ari." Kurt explained, his usually soft voice dripping with hate. "He can hit me all that he wants. But he has to know that he can't break me. Because I won't let him. Not anymore."

"Kurt-" Ari stammered as Kurt's arms slipped from her fingers. "Kurt, wait!"

She ran after him until they were both facing the entrance to the boy's locker room.

"Stay out here," Kurt demanded. "I'll be fine. Don't get involved, whatever you do. Okay, Ari?"

Recognizing the sense of defeat coursing through her, she nodded.

Kurt swung open the door and went inside.

Ari listened to the muffled argument through the other side of the door, Kurt's cell phone gripped in her hand in case the situation turned too violent and the police needed to get involved. Kurt had never stood up to Karofsky before, and she didn't know what would happen.

"What the hell?" Kurt yelled as soon as he entered the locker room.

"Girl's locker room is next door," Karofsky growled.

"What is your problem?"

"S'cuse me?"

"What are you so scared of?"

"Besides you sneakin' in here to peek at my junk?"

"Oh, yeah, every straight guy's nightmare, that all us gays are secretly out to molest and convert you," Kurt fumed, and I could hear the eye roll behind his words. "Well guess what, ham hock? You're not my type."

"That right?" Karofsky demanded.

"Yeah. I don't dig on chubby boys who sweat too much and are gonna be bald by the time they're thirty."

Karofsky's prior indifferent voice was replaced with one of rage. "Do not push me, Hummel."

"You gonna hit me? Do it."

"Don't push me!"

The sound of a slamming locker echoed from the locker room and throughout the hallway.

"Hit me, because it's not gonna change who I am. You can't punch the gay out of me anymore than I can punch the ignoramus out of you!"

"GET OUT OF MY FACE!"

"You are nothing but a scared little boy who can't handle how extraordinary ordinary you are!"

Then there was silence.

No more than ten seconds went by until Ari heard a cry, along with what sounded like a fist punching a locker. That was followed by loud sniffing, and before Ari could brace herself, Karofsky came storming out of the locker room.

She backed herself up against the wall, feeling completely exposed and vulnerable. Karofsky had to know that she had heard everything. What would he do to her? Something worse than Paul had ever done?

The two made eye contact, and Ari felt an unexpected pang of sympathy for the big jock. Tears ran down his cheeks and his hands shook. Instead of appearing angry, as he had sounded in the locker room, he looked rather…afraid.

Karofsky said nothing, and took off running down the hallway.

Ari remained frozen in place, completely appalled at what she had just witnessed. What had happened to make Dave Karofsky, the right guard on the football team, the bullying homophobe, so horrified? What had happened between him and Kurt during those ten seconds of silence?

Without further hesitation, Ari swung open the door the boy's locker room. What she saw nearly broke her heart.

Kurt had slumped down on the wooden bench next to the lockers. He cradled his head in his hands and his shoulders shook with small sobs that were hardly audible, even in the surreal quietness of the locker room.

Ari instinctively joined him on the bench, wrapping her still-sore arms around his lithe frame as tightly as she could, allowing him to bury his face into her shoulder. She felt Kurt's tears stain her shirt, though she didn't care. She simply ran her fingers through his perfectly styled hair until his shaking subsided.

Once his breathing had gone relatively back to normal, Ari dared to ask. "What happened, Kurt?"

Kurt sniffled. "He…oh, Ari…"

She kissed the top of his head soothingly. "It's all right, honey. You're going to be okay. Did he hurt you? Did he hit you?"

Kurt shook his head. "N-no. I'm fine."

"No, you're not," Ari disagreed, rubbing circles on his back. "What did he do, Kurt?"

Taking a deep breath, Kurt answered her in a whisper. "…He kissed me."

Ari felt as if she had received whiplash from the sudden turn of events. Karofsky? Kiss Kurt? That would mean…

"He…he kissed you?"

Kurt nodded.

Dave Karofsky wasn't a homophobe. He was a closeted gay man.

But that wasn't want Ari needed to focus on, now. Kurt had just been harassed in a way he never had been before. He needed her…but Ari found herself having no idea what to do, what to say.

"We have to tell someone, Kurt. Karofsky needs to be stopped. Especially now that we know exactly why he's been bothering you."

"No," Kurt said, his voice laced with defiance. "No, we can't tell anyone that Karofsky's gay. I can't…just force him to come out like that. That wouldn't be right."

Ari knit her eyebrows at his logic. "But…Kurt, after all he's done to you-"

"No, Ari. Please. Promise me you won't."

She sighed. "All right. I promise.

More tears made their way down Kurt's pale cheeks, and Ari found herself having no clue what to do but hug him. She needed someone else's help. Someone who would know what to say. Someone whom Ari had never met, though still despised.

"Kurt? Honey, should we call Blaine?"

Kurt thought for a moment, and then nodded. "My—my phone…"

Ari held it out to him. "I got it for you. Come on, Kurt. Let's get out of here and into your car where you'll be more comfortable."

The two friends made their way to Kurt's Navigator, luckily with no sightings of Karofsky. Once they were settled in, Kurt dialed Blaine's number and took deep breaths as he waited for an answer, probably to make it sound as if he hadn't been crying.

After a few moments, Blaine answered, and Kurt spoke into the phone. "Hi, Blaine, it's Kurt." His voice was so falsely cheery that Ari had to resist the urge to hug him once more.

Ari listened to Kurt's side of the conversation, watching Kurt impatiently wipe new tears from his eyes.

"Oh, everything's fine…just…I…I took your advice and stood up to Karofsky. It…backfired."

Kurt proceeded to tell Blaine the story of what had happened just minutes ago between him and the bully. He was in tears again by the end.

After his story, Kurt was silent for a long few minutes, listening intently to what Blaine was saying on the other end of the line. Ari decided that whatever advice Blaine was giving him, it had to be doing the trick because after a good ten minutes, Kurt's tears had subsided and his face had brightened considerably. Through all the concern Ari had for her best friend, she also wished she had been able to do that in the first place.

"Thank you so much, Blaine," Kurt breathed at the end of their conversation. "I'll see you tomorrow. Bye."

He pressed the end call button on his cell phone, his hands no longer shaking.

"What did he say?" Ari asked.

"He's coming here tomorrow during lunch. He wants the two of us to confront Karofsky...to see if there's a healthier way he can deal with his confusing thoughts," Kurt answered with a small smile. "I'm kind of scared…but I feel safe with Blaine. And I've only met him once. I just…I trust him."

Swallowing the pain, Ari smiled. "That's great, Kurt. I really hope it works."

Kurt drove Ari back to the children's home, and both were silent the entire way.

Ari couldn't stop the growing resentment she felt towards Blaine, especially knowing that he would be at McKinley the next day. That would mean that she would have to meet him, and pretend to like him for Kurt's sake.

Ari had hard times. Kurt had hard times. Today had definitely been one of them. And one of Ari's greatest wishes was that she and Kurt could share with each other. But the fact that the perfect prep school boy was in the picture made that impossible. Kurt could share his hard times with Blaine. Ari could share her hard times, her fears, her pain, with no one.

And it wasn't until Kurt had pulled into the driveway of the children's home and Ari had climbed out of the car that she realized that she had forgotten about Paul in the parking lot.