Disclaimer: I don't own Glee

Chapter 12

The click of the coaches shoes were the only thing to be heard in the silence of the dressing room.

He'd been pacing for quite a while now and it was putting everybody on edge.

It had been a strained atmosphere between the team since Karofsky's expulsion, Kurt had been too preoccupied thinking about Humbert and what Sue had said and about the benefits of Dave leaving that he'd failed to think about how the team, more specifically Dave's friends, would handle the news.

News spread like wild fire around the school and soon everyone knew that Karofsky had been expelled because of Kurt, or in their eyes because of Kurt. He'd tried to explain to everyone who brought it up or glared or pushed him that he hadn't asked Karofsky to be expelled, it was nothing to do with him, how was it his fault that he'd been thrown into a dumpster? Maybe the Coach hadn't done him such a big favour after all.

More then ever he relied on the protection of Puck and Finn, Azimio in particular was one he was trying to avoid. Before practice he'd been faced with the angry boy, intimidating and threatening. Kurt had tried to tell him what had happened, that he'd told the Coach it wasn't Dave, Azimio had retaliated with asking why he didn't tell the Coach who really did it, that he was a coward, truth was he was right, Kurt was a coward, he was afraid of what would happen if he grassed up who actually did it, though thankfully or perhaps not so, the group involuntarily revealed themselves.

"Heh Kurt, Kurt! Psst!"

Kurt's head snapped up from its daze, he was unusually alone, Puck and Finn being in the shower with just the Coaches eyes as protection.

He's blue eyes narrowed as with a cold swoop in his stomach he recognised the faces of the true culprits.

Kurt lowered his eyes and purposely turned his head away.

"Kurt! Seriously, come over here!"

Their whispers were laced with urgency and somehow it made Kurt that tiny bit satisfied to hear that edge of panic.

"Kurt, come on mate we want to apologise-"

"I am not your mate, I have never been your friend or ever want to be your friend so don't try and get all pally with me to cover your backsides!"

Kurt had impressed himself with his outburst, considering how frightened he felt.

"Oh come on Kurt don't be like that, it was a joke! We were just messing around, we do it to each other all the time, we were just trying to…."

Sniggers could be heard between the pause as another voice chipped in, "Include you!"

"Yea! Yea, include you; guys rough each other up, we thought you could handle it, we think your cool-"

"Look, I'm not going to tell anyone about you, Karofky has taken the bullet for you so you're in the clear, just spare me the act, it's embarrassing"

Kurt spoke with more confidence then he felt, but his resolve faltered when he saw one of the boys approaching.

"Heh! Back off!"

Pucks voice cut through his terrified fog like a torch in the darkness, he grabbed onto Pucks shoulder and leaned close into his ear, whispering fervently, "Those are the guys, the guys that threw me in the dumpster"

He almost slapped his hand over his mouth; he couldn't believe he just said that, only seconds after promising that he wouldn't tell, something inside him had just snapped!

Puck showed no signs of hearing, but Kurt could feel his body grow tense and rigid.

He seemed to be staring them down, suddenly not taking his eyes off them as he looked at them each in turn.

He made a step towards the boy with green eyes that had tried to approach Kurt, "Bobby Kogen".

He then did the same to the others, listing out their names.

"Daniel Lamkin"

"Alex Lee"

"and Chris Keenan"

There was a tense silence, he leaned forward, face close to theirs. "Have a nice day".

Kurt knew that even though they were trying to act as if they didn't care, the boys had been freaked out by Puck.

He turned to the larger boy, "Thank you Puck, I think that may be the last I see of them"

Puck hadn't let his sights off the boys, "Don't be so sure"

He turned his head slightly to see Kurt's concerned and confused face, "Just be careful, ok?"

Someone else who hadn't kept his eyes off of the boys was Rupert Humbert, he'd kept a close eye on the exchange, putting the culprits faces to memory, in-case he needed to intervene, but hopefully if all went to plan Puck would deal with them for him.

"Let them obey that know not how to rule"*

GGGGGGGGG

The three boys walked in the way they had grown accustomed; Finn on the right, Puck on the left and Kurt sandwiched in the middle. The Glee club had jokingly started to call them 'The Three Musketeers'.

It was the only way Kurt felt safe these days, and luckily the two boys were happy to do it. He knew it would blow over… eventually, but when you're the target in a school like McKinley that day can seem very far away.

"So we're a step closer to teaching those guys a lesson-"

"Yea, we know who they are" Puck said quietly.

"What should we do, like, a, ultra…slushie….thing?"

"Wow Finn your range of vocabulary never ceases to amaze me"

"Yea"

Kurt looked up to Puck nervously, normally he would have torn into Finn, but his growing monosyllabic speech was starting to worry the smaller boy.

"No, but, you know what I mean, we need to humiliate those guys-!"

"Heh, fags 'R us!"

The three Glee members turned their heads in unison to see Azimio Adams approaching them at a fast pace.

"Just ignore him, keep walking"

Kurt's head sank down, trying to look invisible between his larger protectors.

"I'm talking to you queers!"

"Keep walking"

"HEH!"

Azimio pushed roughly into Finns shoulder and then swung round to face the three boys.

"Back off Adams, or have you not noticed that there's three of us and one of you?"

"All I see is two little girls and a…"

He looked cruelly at Kurt, his lip curled, "an IT"

"Shut your mouth-"

"What do you guys do these days, have private little threesomes?"

"I said-"

"You make me sick!"

His voice had suddenly adopted a colder edge, a brutal, darker tone that sent shivers through Kurt's spine.

"Excuse me?"

"You come in here, people like you, diseased, messed up people, and you send normal people like my homeboy out, what right do you have to spread your affliction over people, how is it fair that we are loosing our right-!"

"Don't you talk to me about rights!" Kurt found himself screaming suddenly, and anger, incredible anger pulsing through him, this was more then just playground bullying; this was deep seated prejudice.

"I'm gonna get you out, you hear me, I'm gonna get you out, and I don't just mean to another school"

"Come on!"

Puck shoved with all his strength past Azimio, tying to keep back the tears prickling in his eyes.

The boys marched in silence, ignoring Azimio's shouts echoing through the corridors.

"He's next, he's next" whispered Puck tearfully.

That's all that Kurt could hear until his tears drowned out all his senses.

GGGGGG

Azimio Adams lay lifeless on the ground.

Well, he thought, that wasn't planned, his name hadn't even been put on the list, oh well, never mind, can't be helped, these things happened, this can be remedied….

He hauled the prone figure off the floor, his strong arms putting the boy over his shoulder easily…yes….this can be remedied.

GGGGGG

"Kurt, listen, you don't have to do this, just say you're not feeling well-!"

"No Puck, the only good thing I have in my life is Glee and I'm not going to let…people like that ruin that for me, I'm going to sing, I'm going to do it well, and I'm going to forget my life just for a few seconds, is that allowed?"

His eyes were still puffy as he turned to Puck and it made the boy ache; they'd been in the bathroom for a long time now, trying to hide the signs of each of their tears, but it hadn't quite been enough to hide Kurt's.

Puck watched with disbelief as Kurt strode into the choir room, all heads turned towards him.

"Kurt-"

"Sorry I'm late everyone" he turned to the small band that had joined the group to aid their performances of the 'under-appreciated show tunes' solos and nodded his head for them to begin.

Mr Shcuester looked at Kurt with worry, "Are you-"

"I'm fine Mr. Shcue, I just want to perform now"

The teacher nodded knowingly, performance was this kid's life, if he was upset this is what would cure him.

Kurt cleared his throat to the concerned looking audience and closed his eyes in preparation for the countdown to the start of the song. "3, 2, 1…"

"Shoes upon the table
And a spider's been killed.
Someone broke the looking glass.
A full moon shining.
And the salt's been spilled."

Kurt felt angry, so angry, more angry then he'd felt in his life, he let his rage come out into the song through every pore, he felt his lip form a snarl, trying to keep it back, felt his fists clench.

"You're walking on the pavement cracks.
Don't know what's gonna come to pass."

Puck looked on at Kurt, barely being able to watch through the pain clouding his eyes, he could see Kurt was struggling, suddenly he couldn't take it anymore and he stormed from the room.

"Puck!"

Kurt ignored everything and everyone around him, ploughing on with the song, voice getting louder.

"Now y'know the devil's got your number.
Y'know he's gonna find you.
Y'know he's right behind you,
He's staring through your windows
He's creeping down the hall."

Puck marched down the corridors, slamming his fists into lockers, kicking anything he could, until he saw them, Kogen, Lamkin, Lee and Keenan.

"Ain't no point in clutching
At your rosary
You're always gonna know what was done
Even when you shut your eyes you still see"

He would have loved to get his hands on Azimio, get them round his prejudiced throat, but they would have to do for now, at least some justice would be served that day.

"That you sold a son
And you can't tell anyone"

He ignored the screaming, the pleading, he even forgot that he was dangerously outnumbered, he just kept letting his fists connect with anything solid, had to wipe the smirks off their faces, keeping in his head the satisfying looks of their faces changing from smug to terrified, watching their eyes grow wider, mouths drop.

He couldn't stop, couldn't get the words out his head, but I tell you something, if I weren't a teacher I'd teach them a proper lesson, Oh God Puck, what's wrong with me?, I think its time we took matters into our own hands!

"Ahh!" He gave one last punch, feeling his strength leave him finally, the people that had been around the fight had fled, it was just him and four unconscious bodies. A small part of him was impressed, he'd managed to take down four guys, another felt that wonderful release you feel when you've let all your anger out, but another part of him was suddenly afraid, he was going to get into trouble for this.

His secondary instinct kicked in, the one he should probably listen to more, and he ran from the scene.

"But y'know the devil's got your number
Y'know he's gonna find you.
Y'know he's right behind you,
He's standing on your step
And he's knocking at your door.
He's knocking at your door.
He's knocking at your door!"

Humbert looked on at the scene before him, a smirk creeping over his face, perfect.

"To climb steep hills requires slow pace at first."*

He carried the unconscious body of Azimio and dropped it heavily onto the pile…no one would ever know.

"Sorry Puckerman, you just got too close"

GGGGGGGGGG

"How swiftly those who've made a pact
Can come to overlook the fact
Or wish the reckoning be delayed
But a debt is a debt, and must be paid."

The choir room was silent, no one knowing quite what to say, no one had seen Kurt so angry before, even Rachel was impressed by Kurt's level of conviction to the song.

Kurt jumped with a start to his mobile phone ringing in his pocket, he looked at the screen: Incoming call: Blaine.

"Excuse me"

Kurt tore from the room, leaving a very concerned Glee club in his wake, "Um, everyone, give it up for Kurt and his very…moving rendition of 'Shoes Upon the Table', great choice…..Kurt"

Kurt's head was swimming, he near fell into the corridor, grappling with the phone, barely able to get his words out, his throat felt so tight.

"Blaine? Blaine baby-?"

"I can't talk for long Kurt, I just wanted to say meet me tonight, Breadstix, seven, be there"

The phone went to the dial tone as Blaine's voice broke.

"Blaine, Blaine!"

GGGGGGG

A/N: (I hope I havn't offended anyone with the content of this chapter, the views expressed are purely by characters like Azimio, not me!)

OMG! GLEE SEASON THREE IS STARTING TONIGHT! YAY! ^^

Sorry for the delay, and thanks to all who put this on their alert/favs list! :)

Please review, just to tell me what I'm doing wrong/right! ^^

*William Shakespeare (Humbert likes to recite poetry and quote famous writers!)

The song Kurt sang is 'Shoes Upon the Table' from the musical 'Blood Brothers'. :)