School has begun.

That's all I can say.

I am tired allll the time... I have to get used to this new rhythm of life and it's going to take a little while. But I am getting there. I promise.

Hope you like this!

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee.


Beginning

They were encouraged not to fall in love.

But for crying out loud, they were teenagers!

People were kissing all around him. Boys and girls who hadn't completely lost their hope of better future. Some even dared to mention marriage, kids and keep a straight face.

Kurt couldn't understand. Didn't they know?


"...leave Artie..."

Philadelphia...

Huh.

In most of Blaine's nice and sunny dreams, he and Kurt were walking hand in hand down the 5th Avenue in New York. This is new. And weird because as far as Blaine could remember, he had never been to Philadelphia.

He makes a mental note to check if there really was a pink, elephant shaped building in the middle of the city center.

"We miss you."

Uh... Why was the blond girl who had barged into their room sitting in his boyfriend's...?

No, wait. Oh! Wow, they are on top of the elephant. And Kurt's smile is so pretty, he's so excited, yes, this is just like Moulin Rouge.

The elephant was pink in Moulin Rouge, wasn't it?

Oh well, the color doesn't really matter. It is still an elephant, that is the only thing that seems to be important to Kurt who is singing Your Song from the top of his lungs. Some people turn to look. They are not happy. How could they not be happy, Kurt has a beautiful voice, how could anyone not like it?

"What? !"

What, what...? Kurt...?

"Kurt!"

Kurt is crying. He's in pain. People are still looking at them but no one is trying to help. Blaine feels helpless as the collar around Kurt's neck burns red, choking the boy he loves, so, so much. He screams, he tries to move but Maria is holding onto his wrist, keeping him in place. She is whispering something under her breath but Blaine doesn't care, he just wants to rip that god-damn piece of leather to pieces.

And there's his dad, beside Kurt, saying he's worthless and deserves to die and that Blaine doesn't really love him. None of it is true and Blaine yells this to Kurt, begs him not to believe any of it but Kurt doesn't hear him. He's in too much pain, he's dying and crying and Blaine knows now why this dream isn't located in New York.

Dream. Nightmare. He could wake up!

"NO!"

Mr. Anderson pushes now limp Kurt off the elephant. Maria lets go of Blaine who reaches the edge just in time to see the people on the street attack the already dead boy, ripping his clothes off, laughing. A desperate, cold feeling goes through Blaine and he doesn't think when he takes a step forward. In just a second, he'll feel the cold pavement underneath...

...or a 100 dollar goose feather pillow.

Blaine opened his eyes to see Kurt sitting in the armchair in the corner of the room, alone. It took a few seconds for his heart rate to slow down as he convinced himself that this right here was the real world and not the one where he had just killed himself. And where his dad had killed Kurt...

"...Kurt?"

Come here, come here, come here...

Kurt's movements were slow as he got up and walked to the bed. Blaine moved so that Kurt could cuddle close to him and somewhere in the back of him mind he realized this would be the first time they slept in the same bed. But when Kurt buried his head into his chest, letting out a long and shaky breath, everything else became insignificant.

"Blaine, we have to…"

"Let's talk in the morning, okay? Just… Just stay right there, don't move."

Kurt's arm sneaked around Blaine's waist and squeezed. In the total silence of the room, every little sound was loud and Blaine could hear the quiet sniffs that Kurt was obviously trying to hide.

Blaine frowned. "Are you crying?"

"No." A lie. "Are you?"

And that's when Blaine realized that yes, yes he was.


"No."

"Blaine..."

"I said no, Kurt."

"We can't hide here forever!"

"We can for now."

"This is bigger than us, Blaine! They are going to kill my friend and if there's anything I can..."

"They will to kill you if we get caught!"

"I have to try!"

"It's too dangerous!"

"He's innocent, Blaine! Stupid, yes, but he doesn't deserve to die!"

"How do you know he's innocent, huh? Do you have any proof?"

"As a matter of fact..."

"How do you know that girl didn't go through the same as you?"

Oh, he had crossed the line.

"You did not just say that."

"How do you know, Kurt?" Because if they were really going to do this, that damn boy better be as innocent as a kitten.

"Puck did not rape her." Kurt's voice was low, he was definitely pissed. "He's an idiot and his brain is down there and he acts tough and mighty but he has a big heart and he would not do that. And as for the proof, the girl's parents kicked her out. She was sent away to have the baby and now, according to Brittany, she in McKinley. Waiting to be sold. They call her Quinn." Kurt took a deep breath. "She's not just an unfortunate victim. If she was, she could have stayed home."

"But what in the world do you think you can do?" Blaine asked. Neither of them had slept enough and when Kurt had announced that they had to go talk to Sue Sylvester, Blaine's brain had all but tilted. "Our faces are probably in the local news by now. It'll be a miracle if we make it to the end of the street."

"Oh, don't exaggerate."

"I'm not! Kurt, I'm sorry about your friend, okay? And I'm sorry about what I said about him but we have to be rational. Things have changed and we can't rush into anything right now. We need to plan our next move carefully."

Kurt was still angry but his eyes were just a little bit softer when he said: "I don't think we have time to be careful." Blaine blinked. "I'm serious; we can't stay here for too long. It's only a matter of time that the police will come interrogate Wes and David. Hell, I'm surprised they are not already here!"

That was true. But right now, the guest room felt like the safest place on Earth. And Blaine wasn't ready to leave the safest place on Earth. He just wanted to lie in bed with Kurt in his arms and dream about... New York and family and red vines...

Oh God, he really was tired.

"Blaine, please. Please, he's a friend. I know it's a gamble but right now Sue Sylvester is the only person who might be able to help. Him and us. And I... I won't be able to live with myself if I did nothing when I know I could have."

"Would he do the same for you?"

"I'd like to believe that he would."

Blaine sighed, putting a hand over his eyes as he tried to straighten his thoughts. A headache was forming in the back of his head. "And what if she won't help us? What if she turns us in?"

Kurt didn't answer for a while. When he did, his voice was quiet. "Then I guess we're kind of screwed." Blaine opened his mouth. "But we won't know if we don't try. Besides, they can't do anything... final... until I'm 18. So I'll be counting on you to set things straight before that."

"If that's your attempt to lighten the mood then I'm sorry but it sucks."

"It wasn't."

He was serious?

"So much could go wrong." There was a desperate edge to Blaine's tone. He knew he had lost this argument, hell, he knew he had never even had a chance. That didn't mean he had to like it, though.

"But think what we might accomplish!"

"...might."

"She's the most powerful woman in Ohio, I have no doubt about that. If we can convince her to help us then sky is the limit. She has contacts and sponsors and people just so scared of her that they'll do anything she asks. And those people have a lot of money. Blaine… If we succeed, just think what will follow! This could be the first move we make to change the world. That's the goal, right?" Kurt sounded so hopeful. "Please."

Blaine shook his head. "It's still not a good idea."

"Yes, it is."

"Kurt…"

"Blaine. I love you. But I'm going to do this with or without your help."

"I know."

They were silent for a few minutes, Kurt towering over Blaine who was sitting on the bed. They were still in the clothes they had arrived in last night, Blaine knew his hair was a total mess and that he needed to shave and Kurt's shirt was wrinkled in a way that would be unacceptable in a normal situation. His hands were on his hips and to an outsider he might have resembled a mom disciplining her son. On any other day this scenario would have made Blaine laugh.

Not today.

"Wes's parents come home tomorrow afternoon. We probably should be out of the house by then."

Kurt's shoulders sagged in relief as he bent down to put his arms around Blaine's neck. Blaine pulled him closer so that he was pretty much forced to sit on his lap and just like that the argument was forgotten.

"Thank you. Again."

"Don't thank me yet."

There were only two ways this could end.


"You're leaving?"

"It's okay, Brit…"

A cat nanny… That's what the blond slave girl Kurt called Brittany and Wes called Heather had introduced herself as. Kurt had explained that the poor girl wasn't the smartest one in the world but she was a genius when it came to cats and Wes's mom owned four of them. So in the end, her official title was indeed 'a cat nanny.'

Blaine gave the two friends some privacy as they said goodbye. Before leaving the room Blaine heard Kurt promise that he'd give someone called Lord Tubbington a long talk about the dangers of smoking. Thinking this so called Lord was just one of the members of their Glee club, Blaine went downstairs where Wes and David were waiting, looking almost as anxious as he felt.

"You guys are crazy. Out of your minds. Stupid," Wes let Blaine know when he reached them.

"Why, thank you, Wes, that's reassuring."

"You don't have to do this!" the Asian insisted and David nodded in agreement.

"We have to do something." Blaine knew that his voice betrayed just how unsure he was himself. He put on a brave face and a small smile that didn't reach his eyes and did nothing to reassure the two older Warblers. He turned around just when David was about to say something when he heard Kurt coming down the stairs. Brittany was hanging onto his arm, her red and white uniform making her look like a cheerleader. "Ready?" he asked and hoped he sounded calm and collected.

"Just a second," Kurt replied. "Brit. Brit, sweetie, you gotta let go now."

"You promise you'll find Lord Tubbington?"

"I promise."

"He likes to hide in the trashcans behind the kitchen. He only eats human food and may refuse to talk at first but just tell him I sent you. He has a fake ID so take any cigarettes you find from him."

"I'll make sure to do that," Kurt said as if everything Brittany had just said made perfect sense to him. Blaine glanced at Wes who was looking at his family's new slave with a deep, disbelieving frown on his face. "Anything else you want me to tell anyone?"

"Just tell them not to worry because my letter for Santa is ready and I asked to see them all again. I've been a really good girl."

Kurt smiled. It was a nice, genuine smile, and the tension in the room lifted a little bit. "Okay. I'll tell them." He pulled the girl into a hug. "Bye for now."

"For now. Oh, and tell Santana I love her so much and that it's okay to be Lebanese."

"I had no idea you knew her," Wes said as soon as they were in his car. For obvious reasons, they couldn't take Blaine's.

"I know, don't worry. Just take good care of her," Kurt answered. He was squeezing Blaine's hand rather hard.

The rest of the drive was quiet. David changed the radio station every time he didn't like the song that was on, every now and then complaining about America's taste in music. Wes drove a little slower than what the speed limit allowed but only grunted that it was his car when Blaine pointed this out.

All too soon, the car pulled over.

"Last chance."

Wes and David had turned around on their seats. Blaine looked from them to his and Kurt's laced fingers and then back again, begging for them to understand. David merely nodded but Wes closed his eyes, his hand gripping the emergency break.

"Oh, damn it all to hell…"

"Wes…?"

Wes didn't reply as he got out of the car and yanked the door on Blaine's side open. "Get out," he ordered.

"What are you…?"

"Get out!"

Blaine didn't even notice Kurt had let go of his hand before the younger boy pushed him gently towards the head Warbler. Blaine wasn't quite sure why his boyfriend was willing to let Wes shake the breath out of him. It took him a couple of foggy seconds to realize that he had been forced out and was now in a tightest hug he had ever received.

"Jesus with you, Blaine…" Wes mumbled into his shoulder. "Seriously."

"I…"

"Just stay safe, alright? Both of you. And you're still crazy."

Blaine swallowed against the lump in his throat but a smile tugged the corner of his mouth when they pulled apart. David had gotten out of the car, too, and wordlessly handed Blaine an envelope.

"What's this, a farewell ca…? Oh my God!"

"What?" Kurt asked, peeking over Blaine's shoulder. "Holy mother of… You guys, we can't…"

"How far do you think you'll get with that 20 dollars you have?" David asked. "Consider this to be our contribution to your little mission."

"You've done more than enough," Blaine said. "There's at least 2000 dollars in here!"

"2235," Wes corrected. "We are not taking it back," he added when Blaine opened his mouth.

"But…"

"No buts, Blaine," David said, giving his shoulder a squeeze. "Just don't expect Christmas presents for the next 30 years."

"But… we… this… guys, 2000…"

"Don't be strangers," Wes said, cutting Blaine off. "You have to go. It's ten to four."

Blaine held the envelope in front of him, staring at it like it was the 8th Harry Potter book. When his brain finally came up with a coherent thought, he tore his eyes away from it to see his best friends in the whole wide world smiling at him like they knew he needed them to. This was hard enough as it was. "Thank you," he whispered, fighting back tears.

"Go," David said. His voice was choked. "Contact us when you get the chance. We'll be following the news."

"I…"

"We know."

Kurt took a small step forward to give each of the boys a quick hug. "You guys are amazing."

"We hope you find your dad," David replied sincerely. "Alright, you really have to go now."

"I know this sounds horrible but I'd appreciate it if you changed the world before Regionals. We need you to win it for us. Believe it or not but I have never been to New York," Wes said. To anyone else it might have sounded like he was serious.

Blaine chuckled. "We'll do our best." Not that they'd actually make it back by the competition but that wasn't something that had to be said out loud. The first step he took away from the car was the hardest one but he forced himself to move, knowing that each minute they fell behind the schedule they had planned would make everything more complicated. "I'm sure Jeff and Nick would sound wonderful together. You should give them a duet."

"Noted," Wes and David chorused.

After that it seemed that everything had been said because goodbye wasn't something any of them was willing or able to say. Blaine turned on his heels, Kurt's hand back in his and keeping his eyes on the school they were approaching, a gray and ominous building that was anything but welcoming. He told himself firmly not to look back.

If he had, he would have seen Wes crying his eyes out on David's shoulder.


"I hereby ban dating between two slaves in this school. If I find any of you worthless, hormone driven slime-balls so much as holding hands, I'll force you to play Rock, Paper, Scissors to determine which one I will send to Iowa."

Rachel sobbed in Finn's arms.

Mike had been bought a week earlier, sending Tina into such deep depression that Ms. Sylvester had been forced to take her off the market. She had been furious, blaming love of everything that was wrong with the world.

As bad as Kurt felt for his friends, in his opinion Sue was ultimately doing them a favor. Tina was a mess and he didn't want anyone else to end up like her. Considering how hard it was for him to say goodbye to Mike, he couldn't even imagine the pain the Asian girl had gone through or how difficult it would one day be to Rachel and Finn unless they tried to fall out of love.

"She can't send any of you to Iowa," Mr. Schuester said one day after Glee club rehearsal. "I'd be careful if I were you but I can assure you that some things are illegal even for her."

Kurt saw Sam take Mercedes's hand. Were they trying to get their hearts broken?

He'd never fall in love. Not ever.


Tada?

What do you guys think? Will they safe Puck and find Burt? Will Kurt meet Quinn?

Who else has been bought while Kurt was away?

Find out in the next chapter!

Ha ha, I'm so failing at this xD

I'm sorry if you were looking forward to more Brittany. That was actually one of the reasons it took me this long to write this chapter. As soon as I had posted chapter 10, I realized I wouldn't be able to do her justice. So I kept trying again and again and finally told myself to stop and write this some other way and now I am finally satisfied.

Okay, until next time!

And...
Never Forget