I know this took me ages, and I am sorry. Lots of good stuff happening in this and the following chapters so I hope you like them! :D

(I do not own Glee)

After the success that was the dinner over Nick's house, Jeff started appearing more often. Nick's mothers actually liked to have the blond boy around, he wasn't dead weight, he helped Nick with his chores if it was needed and cleaned up after himself, he knew when it was time to leave and let them have some family time and most important he made Nick the happiest person around. They only found a bit odd that Jeff spent so little time in his own house.

A couple of weeks before Christmas; Nick, Lia and Catherine were at home watching a movie. Jeff had gone home earlier saying Nick needed some time with his mothers, Nick had protested for he wanted to be with Jeff, they were so incredibly happy together Nick never seemed to find the time he had with the blond enough.

Nick was so focused on the movie he completely missed his phone vibrating beside him with upcoming calls from Jeff.

It was a surprise when they heard someone knocking at the door. Lia stopped the movie so Nick could go open it.

Nick gasped when he opened the door and was faced with a very bloody Jeff.

"I tried to call… But you didn't pick up." Jeff said weakly. Nick didn't even have time to react, he didn't have time to catch Jeff when he fainted.

It was like waking up from a long night of sleep except that Jeff knew he hadn't been sleeping. He was expecting to feel the hard floor under him, but everything felt fluffy and warm.

Jeff could feel something wrapped around his head and someone running their fingers through his fringe.

"Never scare me like that again." Nick spoke in a soft tone.

Jeff smiled weakly and opened his eyes slowly. They were in the guest's room, Jeff had only been there a couple of times, his head was rested on Nick's lap who was sat on the bed leaning his back against the headboard. "Sorry." Jeff mumbled.

"I'm sorry I didn't pick up…" Nick said stroking Jeff's hair. "It's the second time this happens…" He sighed sadly.

"It isn't the second time." Jeff said bitterly.

"I mean the second time you get so bad you need to come here… And this time you even fainted." Nick spoke sadly. "We need a solution for this."

"There's none… I need to at least wait for my birthday." Jeff sighed. Then he remembered something. "Wait… What did you tell your mothers?" He asked worriedly.

"I told them." Nick said calmly, holding Jeff down when he tried to sit up. "They don't agree with keeping shut but they understand and won't say anything… For now."

Jeff buried his face in his hands. "They can't tell, Nick. Not now, not ever!" Jeff said getting nervous already.

"Shhh… Calm down, Jeff… It's going to be alright. You have witnesses now. We'll all help you."

Jeff shook his head. "You still can't prove anything."

"Jeff, you had a huge scratch on your scalp. You're just not in the hospital because you're lucky! This can't continue!" Nick said soft but firmly.

"You don't understand. I can't do it! I'm too weak!" Jeff said curling to the side, getting off Nick's lap, tears already falling from his eyes.

Nick sighed and laid beside Jeff, wrapping his arms around him to spoon him. "That's why I am here… To support you, to help you see that you're so much stronger than you think, to help you through this."

"I can't… She's all I was supposed to have! She was supposed to stay there for me! But all she can see in me is the loser that killed her precious girl." Jeff sobbed.

Nick held Jeff closer. "You have me. I am here and I will always be here. Your mother shouldn't do this to you because you're amazing, love."

Jeff didn't say anything he simply turned around to rest his head on Nick's chest. "I want this nightmare to end."

"And it will… You just need to let us help you."

"We had this same talk before… I promise I will move out once I'm old enough."

Nick sighed and gave up on the subject. There was no use, Jeff wouldn't listen to him and, maybe, trying to make Jeff give too many steps at once wasn't a good idea. He would go calmly but making his best to protect Jeff. No more going home earlier to give Nick and his mothers quality time, maybe even go take him home to make sure his mother wasn't around and the other few things he could do to make sure Jeff would be safe from that despicable woman.

Suddenly Jeff sat up, Nick frowned at him. "Where are you going?" He asked sitting up too.

"I need water..." Jeff mumbled.

Nick placed a hand on Jeff's chest. "Rest down, I'll get you some water."

"Nick, please... I've had it worse, it's just a cut." Jeff aid stubbornly, sliding his legs off the bed.

Nick got up in a jump and walked around the bed to slide an arm around Jeff's waist to keep him steady. Jeff wouldn't say it out loud but he was glad Nick did that because for a few seconds his head spun and Jeff lost his balance.

"Just go slowly, okay?" Nick asked looking up at Jeff. Jeff nodded and walked calmly, letting Nick help him support his own weight.

"Thanks Nicky... Really." Jeff smiled weakly.

"You're welcome." Nick said and leaned up to kiss Jeff softly.

Jeff smiled against Nick's soft kisses. It was almost hard to believe how someone could have so much kindness and love inside of them and yet there was Nick and his mothers who were as kind and loving as him. Before Nick, Jeff didn't know anyone like him, sure Jonathan was one of his best friends, but it wasn't the same, he didn't know the whole truth and if he did Jeff was sure he wouldn't be as understanding and supportive as Nick, he would never understand why Jeff couldn't just leave or why he couldn't defend himself and attack back.

Jeff could hear some hushed voices once they were close to the kitchen and then when they stepped inside Catherine and Lia stopped talking abruptly and looked up at them. "Jeff!" Catherine said and walked around the counter. "You shouldn't be up!"

"I'm okay." Jeff smiled a bit. "I just needed some water."

"Drink juice instead, honey... So you get some sugar in your system." Lia said with a kind smile reaching for a mug to pour down some juice for Jeff.

Jeff nodded and thanked before sitting on a stool.

"Is it hurting?" Catherine asked gesturing to Jeff's bandage.

"Oh... Not really." Jeff mumbled looking down at his lap.

"That's good... We put an ointment on the cut... One I'm used to put myself." Nick said with a small smile.

"The cut wasn't too deep, so you don't need stitches and we're pretty sure the reason you passed out was because your blood pressure was really low when we checked it." Catherine informed.

"Oh okay... Thank you for everything." Jeff nodded a bit, thanking again as Lia gave him the mug with the juice.

"If you feel sick or dizzy or disoriented we will want to know." She said sternly, Catherine nodding in agreement. "We didn't take you to the hospital because... Well... We didn't think you'd want to and since Catherine's a nurse..." Lia shrugged a bit.

"Yes, thank you. There would be a lot of questions." Jeff said looking down at his juice.

Catherine glanced at Lia before she spoke. "We do have questions, though." She said calmly.

Jeff bit his lip, knowing he couldn't refuse to answer. "Oh..."

"For how long has this been happening?" Catherine asked gently, they didn't want Jeff to feel threatened.

"For a while." Jeff mumbled with a shrug.

"You understand this puts us in a very difficult position." Lia said calmly. "We need to report this to the police; it's the right thing to do."

"No! Please don't!" Jeff lifted is head in a blink, his eyes wide in horror. "I swear it usually doesn't get this bad!"

"She can't abuse you like this, Jeff! She needs to be arrested and punished for her crimes." Catherine said.

Nick was in a corner by now, biting his lip. He knew how Jeff felt about police but he also knew his mothers wouldn't give up so easily. He tried to think about a solution himself.

"They won't believe me! She made it look like I was being bullied at school once she'll do it again!" Jeff said desperately.

"But it's different now! Anyone who goes to our school will understand that you're not being bullied there!" Nick replied from the corner.

"Then she'll say I was beaten on the street." Jeff threw his arms up.

"This can't continue, Jeff, you need to get out of there." Lia said firmly.

"My birthday is coming up, once I am 18 I'll get a job and move away, until then she won't let me because she enjoys what she does." Jeff said taking a deep breath.

"Your birthday is still months away." Nick pointed out.

"Okay, here's the deal." Lia spoke after they all spent a few minutes in a tense silence. "You come here after school with Nick, you spend the afternoon with him, here where you're safe -"

"I have karate three times a week." Jeff interrupted.

"You go to karate like you're used to." Lia continued. "And you have dinner with us and then you'll drive home and sleep there and then in the morning in case you can't eat breakfast safely in your house you come over to ours for it. If your mother ever lays a finger on you again we want to know and we'll report."

"Do I have any other option?" Jeff mumbled a bit sarcastically. It was not like he wasn't thankful or like he didn't want that excuse to be with Nick but he felt a bit trapped and just the idea that Nick's mothers could go t the police made Jeff feel sick in his stomach.

"We can go to the police now." Lia said almost a bit coldly.

"Let's try the whole avoiding her thing then..." Jeff ran a hand through his hair, shivering as his hand passed by the scratch.

Nick walked over to Jeff and hugged him. "It'll be fine, Jeff." He muttered and Jeff hugged him back.

"I don't know what to do anymore." Jeff mumbled.

"You're here with us now, you don't have to worry, you can focus on school and... on me since we're on vacation." Nick said with a small smile. Jeff smiled and leaned back pecking Nick's lips gently.

"Just one rule!" Catherine said making Nick and Jeff snap their heads up at her. "No sex while we're in the house." She warned.

Jeff was able to stay with a straight face until Nick blushed madly and squeaked out a "Mum!". Then he just started laughing, his body feeling sore but he didn't mind it, laugh made him feel better.

"Stop laughing." Nick whined, poking Jeff, only making him laugh harder.

The rest of that week was eventless. Jeff felt safer. He had someone who had his back, someone who cared for him and was trying to keep him safe, that made a warm feeling burst in his stomach.

The scratch in his head was easily covered by his hair so he was on his way to the gym after Catherine said it was safe for him to go. He just had to be careful in case he started to get dizzy.

Jeff's phone buzzed. 'Are you sure you're not mad I'm not going?' He smiled softly at the text and quickly answered. 'Of course not, Nicky, if you're not comfortable going it's fine.'

'But I kinda wanted to see you in your element'

'My element?' Jeff chuckled a bit.

'Yeah... You always talk about it with so much passion...'

Nick typed back and lied on his bed, sighing. He really did want to go see Jeff but when he thought about the last time he tried to go his stomach clenched and he had to take a deep breath. So many people and they were all so huge.

Nick sat up quickly. What had Lia said the other day? Nick needed to stand up to his fears. Sure that had also resulted on him being beaten up but this was different, Jeff trusted the people he had karate with and he would be there to protect him if needed, right? But what would they think of Nick? Wouldn't they look at him and see this ugly, insecure boy with a weird sense of fashion? And then they would judge him and comment behind his back and even though Nick didn't know this people it made him nervous to think everyone would hate him.

Nick got up and dressed his jacket. "I don't need to enter the gym, right? I can just for a walk. That sounds good enough." He mumbled to himself pulling his beanie on as well as his scarf. He got out of the house and walked in a fast pace so he wouldn't get too cold. In no time he was at the gym's door.

"Come on, Nick. Don't be a coward you can do this." He muttered to himself, a small vapour cloud forming in front of his lips. He looked down at it and for a few seconds he let himself get distracted with the vapour so he could calm down.

A girl in electric blue hair passed by Nick, bumping on his shoulder, she was talking happily with a dark haired man gesturing widely with her hands, so that was why she probably hadn't seen Nick. Her gym bag fell and she turned her head to Nick. "Oh, I'm so sorry...!" She said as she picked up the bag.

"It-it's fine!" Nick said not too loudly, leaning a bit down to reach for her bag before noticing she already had it so he just straightened up awkwardly.

"Do you need help?" The boy asked.

"Uh, no! I mean... Uhm... No." Nick said nervously looking a bit down and shaking his head. He opened his mouth to say something else but ended up just turning his back to walk away.

Nick waited until the blue haired girl and the boy were inside the gym before he turned around again to give the gym a second chance. He stood there for a few minutes and at the end the thing that made him get inside was the cold.

Nick only gave a few steps into the hall before a woman approached him. "Can I help you?" She asked casually.

"I uh… I wanted to watch the karate practice if possible?" Nick said as he took his beanie and scarf off.

"And why would you want to go watch?" The woman asked a bit coldly.

"My b- my friend is there and he sent me a text asking me if I wanted to come and watch before I decide if I want to sign up." Nick stuttered out the lie, looking nervously at the woman. He could feel the judgment and her eyes roaming his figure. It made him feel so uncomfortable.

"Alright. The gallery is closed so… The studio is that way; most of them are lifting weights in the gymnasium but soon they are going to the studio for the practice. You have some benches there." She pointed to a hallway that led to a door.

Nick frowned a bit at the word studio but then when she finished he simply nodded and thanked the fact the conversation had ended. He walked to the door and once he pushed it open he understood why she had said studio, it was actually a ballet studio but it was obviously being used for karate since the walls were covered with all sorts of posters about karate.

"Nick?" Nick turned his head and smiled at Jeff.

"Hey." He mumbled, smiling shyly.

Jeff walked over to Nick hugging him close. "I thought you weren't coming!"

"I made an effort..." Nick shrugged and leaned a bit back. "Let me look at you!" He grinned widely, eyeing Jeff. "You look nice with your kimono."

Jeff grinned widely and adjusted his belt, proudly. "Thank you!"

Nick smiled wider and leaned up to kiss Jeff. "I'm going to sit now, your practice should be starting."

Jeff nodded. "Let me show you some katas before the others get here." Jeff grinned but then he didn't have time to even step away from Nick before the girl with the blue hair and the brunet guy from before stepped inside the studio.

"Hey Jeff!" The boy said and then he raised his eyebrow slightly at Nick, making him blush deeply.

"Jonathan! This is Nick!" Jeff said happily, pulling a very red Nick close.

"Oh..." Jonathan grinned. "You are the famous Nick? Nice to meet you."

"Isn't that the boy I bumped against outside?" The girl asked lowly to Jonathan before the boy went over Nick to shake his hand.

"Nice to meet you too." Nick smiled a bit, shaking Jonathan's hand.

"I'm Rebecca, by the way!" The girl nodded letting her gym bag fall to the ground, fixing her kimono after.

Nick nodded back at her.

"We actually met Nick outside... He looked quite pale, but now he looks... Normal again." Jonathan said, amusedly. "Are you going to try the practice or...?" He asked.

Nick shook his head quickly. "Nope. Not my thing. I am just going to watch..." Jeff. He added mentally.

"Then sit and enjoy, Jeffie boy here is one of the best around. After me, of course." Rebecca said as she put her belt on.

"Becca..." Jeff blushed.

"What? Nick came to see you anyway... Didn't he?" She teased.

"I did." Nick muttered.

"See?!" She chuckled. Nick blushed deeply as he wasn't aware she would hear him.

Please review? I would really like to know what you think about my fic :) Your opinion really matters to me!

See you next chapter!

~Niff hugs~