26

To say the police interview was a disaster would be an understatement.

It only took two minutes for Kurt to realize the male officer, the one in charge, was homophobic, and his female counterpart was clearly new and afraid to disagree with him.

Officer Walton seemed to think the whole affair was some sort of sex game and that Kurt had gotten scared and backed out at the last minute and was now claiming rape to get back at Karofsky for some undetermined reason. This whole claim made absolutely no logical sense to Kurt, but Officer Walton had clearly worked it up in his mind so that nothing Kurt could say would change a thing.

Burt came running in when Kurt started screaming at the man for being an ass-hole. He practically threw Officer Walton out, and timid Officer Hart scurried out after him.

"Damn this town!" Burt growled when they were gone and Carole had come in to see what all the shouting was about. "Damn its law enforcement! Goddamnit!"

Kurt was staring at the opposite wall, looking lost and upset. When Carole tried to comfort him he shrugged out of her grip and murmured one name. His stepmother left, dragging her husband with her.

Seconds later, Mercedes flew into the room. Kurt fell into her arms, sobbing and trying to explain what had happened and how violated he felt and was this what everyone else would think, too?

Mercedes' eyes blazed with fury, but she only murmured soothing things into her friend's ear and rocked him back and forth gently.

Finn, Rachel, and Quinn stormed in before long, raging about the small-minded homophobia of Lima, and Kurt had to smile a little at Finn Hudson ranting against the very thing he sometimes (although not often anymore) displayed himself. He'd never admit it, but it did make him feel a little better to hear his friends stand up for him.

They all settled down and turned on the TV and found some weird soap opera that had the girls and Kurt completely engrossed in minutes. Finn tried—it was obvious he tried—to pay attention for about three minutes, before he gave up and resorted to what was probably an exciting game of Angry Birds on his phone.

:

Kurt was admittedly apprehensive about seeing his other friends. Mr. Schue had canceled glee so they could all head over early, between school and basketball/Cheerios practice.

Artie, Brittany, Santana, and Puck arrived all together, accompanied by a large bunch of colorful helium balloons.

They all acted like nothing unusual was going on and it was completely normal to be visiting a battered friend in the hospital after a traumatic near-death experience.

Well, except for Brittany, who pounced on Kurt (she was hauled back immediately by an overprotective Mercedes) and began babbling away about Smurfs and how Kurt had looked like one the night before and she was glad he was back to normal because she'd had nightmares about the Smurfs before and she didn't think she could be friends with Kurt if he was going to join their evil clan.

For his part, Kurt knew Brittany well enough to offer her a soft smile and a pat on the hand and the reassurance that he didn't plan on turning into a Smurf anytime soon. Then he quietly thanked her and Santana for finding him, which was a change from the night before that made Finn smile hopefully.

Puck, as it turned out, had decided to drop by school after all, to see what the rumor mill was churning out (as he put it to Finn when he mistakenly thought Kurt wasn't listening). The news was still emerging, but somehow most people knew, even with the omission of names on the news, that Kurt had been involved. The specific people missing from school that day didn't help quash the suspicions. The jocks had been quiet about it.

Tina and Mike arrived soon after, bringing Sam with them. The room was growing crowded very quickly, and Kurt was tiring fast.

He felt his composure beginning to slip after a half hour of forced cheerful conversation in which he only minimally took part. He knew they were all just trying to make him feel like nothing had changed—but the problem was that something had. He could feel it even if they couldn't.

He had changed. If they could see inside him as well as out, they would know that. He almost wished they'd be honest about their current emotions—horror at the knowledge that he'd been violated in the worst way? Mercedes had already warned him that they all knew. Perhaps revulsion at the patchwork of bruises that was his face (and much of the rest of his body, under bandages and sheets and the flimsy gown)?

He felt like screaming but he had the weirdest sensation that none of them would hear it. They were so concentrated on injecting normalcy into the situation that he didn't think they'd want to hear it even if they could.

"They don't tell you how bad it hurts," he said conversationally to Tina, who was currently closest.

She blinked. "How bad what hurts?"

"Losing your virginity."

The room had grown very silent, as one by one they'd all heard Kurt's voice and stopped to listen to what he had to say. Now they looked as if they wished they hadn't.

"You don't have to talk about this," Santana said, her expression clearly indicating she hoped he wouldn't.

Kurt shrugged. "It hurts like hell."

Nobody moved.

"Kurt…" Mercedes began, her voice cracking. She shook her head and pressed her lips together.

"Well, you all were trying so hard to avoid the elephant in the room, but the only way it's ever going to leave is if we let it stampede its way out."

"There's an elephant in here?" Brittany whispered to Artie. He shook his head tightly.

Tension hung heavy in the room until a new voice entered.

"Hey, guys. What's going on?"

Mr. Schue looked confused by the dense silence he had just walked into. His eyes went to Kurt and he tried and failed at producing a smile.

"So…I was, uh, thinking about our set-list for Regionals—"

"That's it?" Kurt exploded.

Will gaped. "Well, I, uh…"

"Do you really want to talk about it, Kurt?" Puck asked roughly. "Do you want to relive it?"

Kurt recoiled and the silence erupted into fierce protests against Puck's question and defense of the person it was directed at.

Mr. Shue looked like he was sorry he'd come.

Kurt curled up as best he could with his injured ribs and one leg stuck in a cast, and put his hands over his ears, squeezing his eyes shut against the flurry of movement. He felt his breathing begin to quicken.

"It is time for you all to leave!" Maria's voice, raised commandingly, cut through the pandemonium. "Kurt needs his meds and a nap, and he certainly does not need this excitement."

Everyone turned to look at Kurt, noticing for the first time his feeble attempts to ward them off. Awkwardly, they muttered sullen apologies and wished Kurt farewell. Mercedes was the last to leave; she kissed her friend on the temple and whispered that she would be back the next day.

The medication made Kurt pleasantly drowsy. He switched on the television and soon found a channel that was airing the Disney version of "Hercules." This had never been a favorite of Kurt's, but he did enjoy the song currently being performed by the cartoon hero onscreen.

As Kurt drifted off, he found himself singing along:

"…I can go the distance
I don't care how far
Somehow I'll be strong
I know every mile
Will be worth my while
I would go most anywhere
To find where I belong…"

Hercules had it easy. He wasn't gay. And maybe he didn't have any friends, but at least having no friends meant not being forced to watch them drift away out of pity. Because Kurt couldn't erase the shocked faces of New Directions from his memory. They didn't want to confront what had happened to Kurt now.

He wondered if they ever would.