Again, I apologise for how long it's taken to get this out. But prepare yourself for some sleepy Nick and some angst and cute stuff and nosy Kurt and other stuff... I'm sorry, I'm tired and I have to work all day tomorrow, so I'm going to bed. I hope you enjoy this chapter though!


It was his throbbing knees that woke Jeff the next morning. He groaned as he opened his eyes and peeled the blanket away from his legs to check on the injuries. It was mostly just a bad scrape and the few cuts weren't too deep but they were still red and hot, and quite painful when he moved. At least they weren't bleeding anymore. As he poked one knee and winced, he heard something from behind him and he threw the blanket back over himself quickly.

"Hey," Nick mumbled, wandering towards the kitchen in search of his morning coffee. Jeff watched him go, telling himself he wasn't admiring the other guy's ass in those… boxers?

"Nick?" he called. The brunette poked his head around the corner sleepily, eyes half closed. "Yeah?"

"You're not wearing any pants. In case you didn't know." Or, you know, a shirt.

Jeff couldn't hold back the slight smirk as Nick looked down and frowned. "Oh. Fuck." He walked back to his room and disappeared, only to come back a moment later in track pants. "Now I am."

"Now you are," Jeff agreed, shaking his head and forcing down a smile. Nick headed back to the kitchen and soon enough the beautiful sound of coffee being made could be heard. The blonde rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling, his thoughts beginning to wander where he really didn't like – or at least wasn't about to admit that he did. It involved those track pants and boxers being removed fairly quickly and Nick being bent over the kitchen bench…

As he tried to banish that thought from his head, Nick returned with two mugs of steaming coffee, already chugging one down like his life depended on it. He held the other one out questioningly to Jeff who took it, sitting up to drink. As he swallowed the first mouthful (he didn't like it this way but at the moment he wasn't about to complain) he heard a much more clear-headed Nick say, "What happened to your knees?"

Jeff glanced down and realised the blanket had slipped, revealing the damage done the previous night. "Nothing," he mumbled "I just tripped."

And it was the truth, for once. No one had beaten him up or done anything suspect to him. He'd just stumbled and hit the pavement too hard for his skin to handle. Whether Nick believed him or not didn't matter. But the brunette set down his drink and moved to look closer.

"They look pretty bad," he commented.

"They'll be fine." Jeff bit his lip and pulled the blanket back up to cover the cuts. He hoped that would be the end of it but no, Nick had to go be a damn decent guy and offer to patch them up. And by 'offer', he meant 'told him to keep that pretty ass where it was while he went and got what he needed'.

There was no way that the coffee had quite kicked in yet if Nick was going around calling his ass pretty.

Jeff did as he was told, not wanting to offend the guy who'd let him stay when he had absolutely no reason to. Quickly enough Nick returned with a small box in his hands, and he knelt down beside the couch and pulled the blanket away to work.

"Does it hurt?" he asked as he dabbed something onto the open cuts. The blonde hissed, jerking his legs away and fuck, he swore the universe was against him because as he did so, he managed to catch Nick in the side of the face with one knee. Hard. The brunette fell back as pain shot up Jeff's leg.

"Shit, sorry!" He wasn't sure what to grab at first – his knee or Nick. In the end it was Nick, and he held onto his shoulder tightly to see if he was okay. The other shook his head, rubbing his jaw where he'd been hit. "I'm fine," he said with a slight smile "Really."

Jeff stared at him for a moment longer to make sure – he really hadn't meant to do that. Hitting the guy in the face probably wouldn't do him any favours when he needed all the help he could get. Then he relaxed a little when he saw Nick really was okay and he hadn't hurt him too badly. His knee, however, was another story altogether. It was throbbing painfully now and the other wasn't much better. Nick returned to fixing it, rubbing the antiseptic liquid in more carefully this time.

"Sorry," he said as he picked the few pieces of gravel out, making the blonde wince.

"I've had worse," Jeff replied quietly.

Nick bandaged the wounds and leaned back to look Jeff in the eye, still with that small smile on his face. "I can give you some pain killers if you want."

"No, I'll deal." He didn't want to take more from Nick than he had to. "Don't you have stuff to be doing? Places to be?"

The brunette shook his head and sat back, crossing his legs under him. "Nah. No classes today and no plans." Then he stood up and took his empty mug to the kitchen, disappearing from view. "You hungry?"

Jeff contemplated saying no, despite the fact he'd thrown up his dinner from last night and his stomach was rumbling painfully. But as he opened his mouth, something made him change his mind and he got to his feet slowly, making sure he was stable as he replied, "Yeah. Starving."


By the time Jeff had eaten, showered, redone the bandages, and gotten changed into his cut-off jeans and t-shirt, it was only ten thirty. That meant a whole day to fill until he had to head to the club – it was Friday, after all. Usually he would lounge around and sleep or read (he didn't do that so much anymore because it hurt his eyes and the words on the page were starting to go fuzzy) but he didn't want to just hang around in someone else's house. It felt wrong. Especially because at that particular moment Nick was filling the sink to wash the dishes. He wanted to be useful and not just sit around doing nothing. Nick was letting him stay when he didn't have to at all.

He wandered into the kitchen and leaned on the doorframe, clearing his throat to get the other's attention. Nick looked over curiously.

"Yeah?"

"Um… was there anything you wanted me to do?" he asked awkwardly.

Nick frowned and shook his head. Jeff tried to explain without looking like too much of an idiot but he wasn't sure he succeeded. "I mean, you are letting me stay and I said I'd pay you – which I will, of course, but I was just wondering if you wanted me to do anything to like, help out or something… So I can be useful."

Realisation dawned on the brunette's face and he smiled. "It's fine. Honestly. And there's nothing to do anyway. I just wanted to get these out of the way so I didn't have to worry about them later."

Jeff nodded, biting his lip. He still felt like he was being lazy and useless, but if Nick wasn't going to give him anything to do then there was nothing he could do about it.

The doorbell echoed loudly and Jeff flinched. Someone was at the door and only one thought crossed his mind – he wasn't supposed to be here. He stared at Nick, not sure what he was supposed to do. The brunette looked out the window above the sink and swore. "Crap, it's Kurt." Then he turned to Jeff, a worried look on his face. "I really hate to say this, but Kurt will have a heart attack if he realises who you are. Would you…"

He knew what he was asking and nodded. "Where?"

"Um… go hide in my room or something. He won't go in there." Nick said, not appearing to be thinking as the doorbell rang again and he dashed to greet his friend. The blonde stood there for a split second before quickly making his way to the living room to collect his bag and stuff the blanket and pillow down the back of the couch. He ducked into Nick's room and shut the door just as he heard the front one open.


"Kurt!" Nick smiled as he saw his friend on his front step "What are you doing here?"

The second brunette smiled, giving his friend a hug before responding. "We were worried when you didn't turn up yesterday. You didn't pick up your phone either."

"Sorry." Nick stepped aside to let Kurt in. "I was asleep most of yesterday and my phone battery went flat. I would have called…"

"It's okay, we just wanted to know what was going on," Kurt chuckled "You hardly ever miss your classes. Caine was asking about you, by the way. Wanted to know where you disappeared off to."

"Tell him I'm fine. I'll be back Monday."

The pair walked into the kitchen, where Kurt saw the full sink and dirty dishes. "Sorry, I didn't realise you were busy."

"Don't worry about it," Nick laughed "How are the guys? Thad? Blaine?"

Kurt instantly launched into an explanation of how Thad was dealing with married life with Ivy, and how some guy had come onto Blaine last night and Kurt had been forced to jump in and defend his boyfriend because said boyfriend was entirely oblivious. As his visitor continued to talk, Nick tried his hardest to concentrate on what was being said but his thoughts kept wandering to the blonde hiding away in his room. It probably wasn't such a brilliant idea to hide him there, but it had been the first place he could think of. And now he was thinking about Jeff, and that worry he'd had in his eyes when he'd accidently hit him in the face, and the way he'd come to him yesterday and broken down in front of him, and then he was thinking all the way back to the time he'd snapped photos of him under the streetlight, barely keeping that mask in place.

Don't pity me. I don't want it.

Nick chewed on his lip, not paying attention to what Kurt was saying anymore. It was only now he was realising just how broken Jeff was. He'd seen the brave face he put on, the bitchiness and the confident façade. And he'd seen the terror in the blonde's eyes when he'd been high on coke, and the light there when he laughed. He didn't know Jeff fully by any means – but he knew enough to want to help him and fix him and make him okay. It wasn't fair that he was like this; it wasn't fair that he had to do what he had do.

"Nick?"

"Yeah?" He looked up to see Kurt with one eyebrow raised , one of his signature bitch glares in full effect. "You weren't listening to a word I said."

There was no point denying it. "Sorry."

Kurt sighed with a small smile, checking his phone quickly. "I should go anyway, I have plans with Blaine. Do you mind if I use the bathroom quickly?"

Nick gestured for him to go and as soon as the other brunette was gone, he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He really needed to get his thoughts under control. Having Jeff around didn't exactly help, but he wasn't going to kick him out. No way in hell. He was going to do what he could to help him.

A minute later Kurt returned, holding something in his hand that made Nick's heart drop to the pit of his stomach.

"You know I would completely understand if you were into all that," Kurt said, holding up Jeff's glittery makeup – he must not have put it back from last night and now Kurt had found it. "I just never would have thought you were the type."

There was something in Kurt's voice that didn't quite sound right. Like he knew something he probably shouldn't. Does he know? He can't. He doesn't know who Jeff is, he can't know.

"Or do you have some secret boyfriend I don't know about?" Kurt chuckled and there was the edge in his voice. He thought Nick was hiding someone and was pissed he didn't know about it first. It was some unspoken rule that Kurt got to know about all new relationships before everyone else or he got annoyed with you.

Nick wasn't sure what to say. Admit he had someone hiding in the house? Say the makeup was his and deal with the aftermath of that? In the end he decided there was no way he could lie to Kurt when he was staring like that.

"I, uh, I have a friend staying for a few days…"

Kurt's eyebrow rose even higher at that. "A friend? You have a friend that we don't know about?"

"Yes…" Nick said quietly, hoping Kurt would just leave it at that. But no, he refused to drop it and his next question was, "Is he here? Can I meet him?"

Nick opened his mouth to tell him that no, his friend wasn't here at the moment, when a loud crash sounded from somewhere else in the house. The brunette paused and admitted, "Yeah, he's here. Hold on a sec."

Nick left Kurt in the kitchen and headed for his room. The second he opened the door he saw Jeff standing over the shattered remains of the bedside lamp, biting his lip. The blonde looked up and Nick saw that worry there in his eyes again.

"God, I'm sorry," he started but the brunette cut him off. "It's okay. Seriously. But my friend wants to meet you."

He held out his hand and it took a second for Jeff to process that. When it finally hit he frowned and stared. "Does he know?"

"You're a friend of mine," Nick told him "That's all he knows. Are you coming?"

Another second passed and finally Jeff walked over to him hesitantly. Nick grabbed his arm and started back for the kitchen, saying, "Sorry about this, but Kurt's nosy and he won't let it go unless he meets you. If he asks any questions, just make something up."

They walked back in, Nick smiling at Kurt and gesturing to the blonde beside him. "Kurt, this is my friend Jeff. Jeff, this is Kurt."

"Hi." Kurt smiled widely and held out his hand. Jeff shook it but clearly didn't look happy about the whole situation he'd just been thrown into. Nick made the mental note to apologise properly once Kurt was gone.

"So how do you guys know each other?" the pale brunette asked "I haven't heard Nick talk about you before."

"Oh, uh… we used to know each other… ages ago," Jeff stumbled over his words unconvincingly. Nick jumped in to finish. "Yeah, when we were kids. Don't you have somewhere to be going, Kurt?"

The man in question sighed and nodded, glancing at his phone again. "Yeah, I should get going. It was nice meeting you Jeff. Nick, I'll see you around?"

"Sure. We're at the bar tomorrow so I'll see you then."

He walked Kurt to the door and let him out. As soon as the car had left his driveway he went straight back to Jeff to apologise. When he got there he found Jeff picking up the glitter makeup Kurt had left on the table.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly "I tried to hide everything, but… "

Nick stepped over to him and gripped his shoulder in one hand. "Jeff, it's fine. Don't worry about it. It's all fine."

The blonde sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face. "Okay," he said quietly before walking out quickly. Nick sighed as he heard a door shut a few moments later.


Jeff walked out of the kitchen and collected his bag from Nick's room before heading to the bathroom and shutting himself in. He just needed a minute or so to process what had just happened.

One.

He'd just been introduced to one of Nick's friend. As a friend.

Two.

Nick was being incredibly nice to him. It wasn't just the whole 'letting him stay' thing either. He was just being nice for no damn good reason. Not questioning him when he went out to work last night, helping with his knees that morning, not caring when he'd screwed everything up just now.

It didn't make any sense. Nick had no reason to be this nice to him. The guy had been his last chance at shelter before the street and he'd only asked out of desperation – but now he was being so nice and none of it quite fit with what he knew of Nick.

This was the guy who'd saved his life then told him that his work didn't mean anything.

This was the guy who'd saved him from an overdose then attacked Sebastian.

Who one minute seemed to want to screw him and the next wanted nothing to do with him.

Jeff sighed, searching through his bag for the pendant Nick had picked up off the floor yesterday when he'd accidentally scattered everything. He let the chain run through his fingers, the angel lying in his palm. He bit his lip as he stared at it then closed his hand over the necklace, closing his eyes and sliding down the wall until he was sitting with his head tilted back against it. He began to silently mouth the words to the children's song that had, since he was fifteen, never failed to remind him of someone he would now do anything to see again.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star

How I wonder what you are

Up above the world so high

Like a diamond in the sky

Twinkle, twinkle, little star

How I wonder what you are

A tear slipped down his cheek.


"Nick?" Jeff asked as he stopped in the front doorway, glancing up. The brunette poked his head around the corner. "Yeah?"

"I don't suppose you want to head down to the club with me?" He was mostly joking but he certainly wasn't going to be complaining if Nick came to the club. But Nick shook his head with a smile. "No, I think I've had quite enough of Body Shots. Be safe?"

The almost casual comment on the end of the sentence practically floored Jeff and he stared for quite a while before he could stutter out, "Y-Yeah, okay." Then he quickly stepped outside, shut the door and stopped dead. Be safe? Had Nick actually just said that? In a genuine tone? He figured he shouldn't really be surprised, what with all the nice things Nick had been doing, but it had still caught him off guard. Sebastian was the only one who had ever said that and even then rarely. It was a mostly unspoken sentiment. Thinking of Sebastian, Jeff started off for the club and hoped his friend would be there. He hadn't shown up last night and he was starting to worry – he hadn't replied to any of his texts either.

By the time he got there he was panicking. Why the fuck hadn't he gone to check on the guy? He'd been too caught up in Nick's behaviour to even think about checking in on a drug addict who wasn't answering his phone. What the hell was wrong with him? He was a terrible friend and an awful person. But as he dashed in to the backstage area to search Sebastian out, he saw him almost instantly chatting with Trent. He ran over, relief hitting him hard.

"Seb, you okay?" he asked as the taller of the two turned to face him. He paused, seeing the exhaustion clearly on Sebastian's face and the bloodshot eyes, the dark circles.

"I'm great, Jeff," the brunette replied with all his usual confidence but no sarcasm. "You look pretty well yourself. I'd stay and talk but I'm supposed to be on stage in a minute so I have to go."

With that he walked off, his confident air vanishing as his shoulders sagged and his head dropped a little now that he wasn't facing anyone.

"Trent, is he okay?" Jeff asked, looking over at the other man. Trent shrugged with a sigh. "I don't know. He came here looking for you the other day and I haven't seen him since 'til now. He's done something stupid, I can guarantee you."

The club owner glanced across at Jeff with a curious expression. "Where did you go, by the way? You know I would have let you stay if you'd come back in a few hours."

The blonde chewed on his lip, still thinking about Sebastian. "It doesn't matter. I'm worried about him though."

"So am I. Whatever you two fought about, get over it because it's killing him." Trent gestured to where Sebastian, dressed in jean shorts, ripped shirt, leather jacket and cowboy boots, was just about to walk out onto the stage. "He needs you more than he'll admit, and it's exactly the same with you."

A moment later and music began to play, and Sebastian strutted out to sing. Jeff and Trent moved to the main club area to watch as the brunette walked slowly and swung his hips seductively.

When you came in the air went out
And every shadow filled up with doubt
I don't know who you think you are
But before the night is through
I wanna do bad things with you

This was Sebastian's best song and he was brilliant at it. There was a chair left in the middle of the stage for him and he used it well, sitting on it with the back to his chest and stretching his long legs out to each side. The men watching him, whether they'd heard him sing this before or not, were following his every movement – his hands, his legs, his mouth; he had them in the palm of his hand.

I'm the kind to sit up in his room
Heartsick and eyes filled up with blue
I don't know what you've done to me
But I know this much is true
I wanna do bad things with you

Okay

Sebastian moved his body with so many years of practice, not even having to think about it as he tossed in a roll of his hips against the chair and bent low over it, eyes hooded as he kept his gaze to the floor.

When you came in
The air went out
And all those shadows there
Filled up with doubt

Nobody got to touch Sebastian during this song – nobody was allowed anywhere near him. He was off-limits, his booted feet just a few centimetres out of reach. He slowly shrugged off the jacket, letting it fall behind him as he slipped out of his shirt carefully and was left in just the jean shorts and boots.

I don't know who you think you are
But before the night is through
I wanna do bad things with you
I wanna do real bad things with you

Oh

He teased and ran his hands over his body, occasionally tugging at the waistband of the shorts but never going any further. The regulars knew he wouldn't but it didn't stop the spell from snaring them too, and the ones who were seeing this for the first time just stared and silently – or not so silently – wished for something more.

I don't know what you've done to me
But I know this much is true
I wanna do bad things with you
I wanna do real bad things with you

As the music faded away, Sebastian smirked and slid to his feet, walking off stage to shouts for him to come back. Jeff watched the men contemplatively, recognising regulars, and wondering for a brief second what their lives must be like if they had to come to a sleazy place like this every other night. But then he shook his head and headed backstage again, leaving Trent behind. He had performances to get ready for, and if Sebastian was willing to talk, then a conversation he needed to have with the dancer.


Song is Bad Things by Jace Everett.

Please review!