A/N Warnings for physical violence / fighting, language and Nick's dad basically being a raging douche bag.

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Happy Friday! What are you guys reading this weekend? Anything you want to share so we can all read something good? I found a good one on S&C, but nearly died when I realized that she'd written 7 REALLY good chapters( which made me laugh out loud so hard my belly hurt)...but then hasn't updated in MONTHS. How much is too much to message an author and literally BEG them to finish a great story? Check it out, it's called Dashboard Confessional and it's a riot!

Again, I thank you all for your kind words about the story...I can't get over the fact that it's being read and enjoyed. Makes me giddy!

CHAPTER 26

Nick was awaked by his cell phone ringing, but when the ringtone announced that it was his father, he let it go to voicemail and snuggled back up to Jeff. The phone rang again almost immediately, and Nick scrunched his forehead in annoyance, again, letting voicemail pick up. When it rang a third time, he was well and truly pissed off, but then suddenly thought that perhaps something was wrong...maybe with his mom or Bailey?

"Hello...dad...what's wrong?" he asked, still groggy.

"You tell me, Nicholas. What is wrong? It seems there have been recent developments in your social life that you haven't made your family privvy to? I don't appreciate having to find out from someone else, Nicholas. I'm your father. The very least you could do is have the decency to inform me yourself." David Duval scolded him.

Nick was shocked. Since when did his dad give a shit who he dated? This made no sense at all.

"Dad, really? I only just met Jeff in person 24 hours ago..not even that! And which one of those assholes ratted me out, Robby or Danny?" he growled.

"WHAT? Your brothers were aware of this relationship as well?" he boomed.

Oh shit...

"Only since yesterday. Dad, what's this really about?" Nick asked, only just realizing that Jeff was now awake as well and leaning on his hand, his elbow propped up under him.

"I'll be blunt, Nicholas. You've always been quite astute with your choice of relationship partners. In school, you chose well bred boys of your own circle. In college, you brought home that nice boy, Ben, whose family is from a long line of..."

"Dad! What is this about? You're making no sense." Nick boomed. He didn't want to hear one more word about Ben…

"You will show some respect Nicholas, and not speak to me in that tone. I don't care how old you are, son..." he sneered, " you will show your parents respect!" David Duval growled back at him. "What this is about, Nicholas, is the fact that you've taken up with someone clearly not suitable. He is not of our 'rank' Nicholas, and I think it best for you to put an end to this delusion as soon as possible. Clearly there are reasons other than your charm and countenance that would make Mr. Sterling find you a good catch." The way his father said Jeff's name, as if it were poisonous, made Nick want to explode, but he knew he would do well to keep his temper in check as long as he could.

Nick chuckled. He actually...chuckled. Clearly this was some kind of joke.

"Dad, that's ridiculous! Jeff didn't approach me, I approached him! He had no idea who I really was until last night. And we still haven't actually discussed that at length! He has no alternate agenda, and even if he did, I'd want him around anyway. I can't believe you're acting like this!

Laying next to Nick, Jeff could make out just about everything David Duval was saying, and his blood turned to ice. His eyes were wide, and his breathing was irregular.

"I believe I made myself clear, Nicholas. You have a matter of hours to remove that person from your apartment and your life. I am not asking, I'm telling you."

Jeff was sick. He felt his stomach turn and he rolled off the bed before Nick could grab his arm.

"Jeff! Wait!" he said, ignoring his father for the moment.

"Oh, so he's there now? Wonderful, well, you can inform him that he will need to leave, and the sooner the better."

"Yeah, he's here now, and for what it's worth we were sleeping before you so rudely interrupted with this bullshit, dad!" Nick continued talking, but Jeff didn't hear his words. All he could hear was the blood rushing in his ears, the sound deafening.

Stumbling into the bathroom, he barely made it to the toilet before he was dry heaving. There was nothing in his stomach to come up. The coffee and danishes were still on the kitchen counter. Suddenly he was aware of Nick yelling, and he felt the heaves wracking his body again. Jeff was the cause of Nick and his father arguing. And all he could hear were the words of his cousins when the neighborhood bullies came around during their childhood: Blood is thicker than water, and family sticks together!

Lightheaded now, Jeff sat on the cold tile and leaned his head back against the wall. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly, held his hands roughly against his ears to block out the yelling, and forced himself to take a few deep breaths. Yes, surely this whole thing with Nick was just too good to be true. All good things had to come to an end, right? He just wished he'd had a few more days with Nick before it ended. But Nick's family was important to him, even if he didn't get along with his father. He would surely do what he was asked to keep the peace, and Jeff could barely fault him. They'd just met, after all, and this was his family laying down the law. Still nauseous, he let the tears fall down his cheeks, forcing himself to cry softly.

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In the bedroom, Nick was on full alert now. His father had obviously lost his mind. He was asking him, no, TELLING him, to ditch Jeff. Clearly this was not an option.

"Dad, with all due respect, I'm a grown man. I've done everything you've ever asked of me. I went to the boarding school YOU chose instead of the one I wanted to go to...the one all my friends were going to. I went to your alma mater for college, even though I was given full ride to 6 other universities I would have rather attended. And let me tell you about good ol' Ben, dad. Remember the night I brought him home to meet all of you? Well, when we drove back to school that night, he roofied my drink and decided to practice on me. That's why you never saw him again. I gave up MY dreams to take a position you insisted I take at your company, and every day I regret it. I have never let you down, dad, but I have to tell you, you've gone too far this time."

"That's a lie, Nicholas, and you know it. Ben's father and I are business associates, and I do not appreciate..." but Nick cut him off, almost laughing outloud when he realized that, out of that whole conversation, his father picked defending Ben to counter argue with. Amazing.

"YOU don't appreicate? YOU DON'T? Call the school, dad. Ask to see my medical records for my junior year. I had to move heaven and hell for those records to stay quiet, so as not to embarrass YOU, dad. They'll clearly show the trip to the hospital to fix the damage, and there was plenty of damage, dad. Apparently good ol' Ben didn't have the slightest clue what being with another man entailed, so instead of just talking to me about it, he figured he'd knock me out and 'practice'! Clearly, it didn't end well at all for either of us!" Nick shot back at him. He was furious now, and nothing his father said would change his mind. There was no way in hell he was breaking things off with Jeff because his father was a conceited ass.

"I'll repeat myself one last time, Nicholas. You will remove that man from your apartment...by this evening...and I will have someone making sure that this is the case. Do you understand me?" David said, calmly and slowly, making the hair on Nick's neck stand on end.

Furious didn't even begin to describe how Nick was feeling. He was so angry with his father that he just said the first thing that came to his mind, hoping to offend his father in the same way he'd done to his son.

"Well, dad, I'm sorry to say that it'll have to wait until I'm done fucking him, which I intend to do as soon as you let this farce of a conversation go, and I plan to keep doing it for a long, long time!" Nick screamed in a rage. He had never, in all his life, been this angry with his father, and he was not past saying anything he could to irritate him further.

"Nicholas Michael Duval! You do not speak to me that way! I can see that this "Jeffrey" is already having a poor effect on you. For the last time, Nicholas, you WILL end this friendship with that boy."

"And if I don't?" Nick asked.

"There will be consequences, Nicholas. There are always consequences." David said, and disconnected the call. The threat and menace in his voice was unmistakable.

Nick threw his phone at the wall in fury, growling out foul words in anger, and headed into the bathroom, only to find a stoic Jeff seated on the cold floor against the wall. His knees were drawn up to his chest, his eyes were red and puffy and it was painfully obvious he'd been crying. He had the palms of his hands snugly over his ears and he was staring at the floor. Nick sunk down on the floor next to him and put his arms around Jeff, pulling him into his chest tightly.

"I'm not letting you go, Jeff. He's in some sort of snit, it'll pass. I won't lose you, and I'm begging you to ignore the last 15 minutes of our lives and come back to bed with me. Jeff stayed there for a minute before sitting back up and looking Nick in the eye. He tried so hard to force a nonchalant smile, but figured he was failing miserably.

"I should go, Nicky. I'm not out to cause trouble with your dad. Technically he's your boss, too, and he could really make things bad for you. I don't want that, I won't have it. I care way too much for you to make your life miserable." Jeff said, trying to keep a brave face when he was dying inside. "Thank you for a truly amazing night, Nicky." He smiled, tears still in his eyes, and kissed Nick's fingers.

He gave a halfhearted shrug and stood up, walking out of the bathroom to grab his clothes. He would absolutely not allow himself to be the cause of any hardship for Nick. He would gather every ounce of his courage, hide his broken heart, and let Nick go on with his life without Jeff in it. He would not cry and break down in front of Nick. He would slowly die later, when nobody else was around.

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Blaine was running full speed down the steps, praying that he didn't hit one wrong and fly headlong to the floor with both kids under his arms. At the landing he readjusted them, trying to haul both of them to his hips, but Evee was like a wet noodle, and wouldn't hold on. Matthew was hysterical.

He dashed across the street, well aware that Kurt and Sebastian were following closely behind him. They could hear the shouting at the door to Maggie's building at street level and Blaine's first instinct was to charge in headfirst and throttle Josh.

"BLAINE!" Kurt screamed. "You can't take those kids back in there! They've seen and heard enough. Give them to me." Kurt gently took Evee in his arms, holding her like a baby and cradling her head to his shoulder. He sat on the stoop to the building next door and cuddled Matthew to his side, clutching him closely and murmuring in his ear.

"It'll be fine, buddy. Blaine will handle it and make sure your mom is ok." Kurt told him. Matthew sobbed next to him while Evee trembled in his arms. Blaine and Sebastian charged inside without any thought of what could happen to them.

The front door had clearly been kicked in. The latch was broken and half hanging off the doorframe. The doorknob was busted. They could hear a man yelling from down the hall. Throwing a glance at each other as they paused in the entry, their eyes both read the same: Are you in?

"Show me what ya got, Killer...let's do this!" Seb said nonchalantly, and nodded toward the noise. Blaine headed in first, and Seb was immediately distracted.

My God, look at his back…and his arms….the muscles…he's tan, and it's still Spring…..oh shit, focus Sebastian, or you're gonna get your ass handed to you! Could he NOT have put a shirt on first?

"Maggie! Blaine yelled, charging into the apartment and heading toward all the noise.

"..the hell?" Josh sputtered out as Blaine and Seb rounded the corner. "Get the hell outta here, this is a private conversation!" he yelled. Josh wasn't what Blaine had expected. Ok, so he wasn't sure exactly what he'd expected, but it wasn't this greasy, dirty looking, sorry excuse for a man standing in Maggie's hallway. He looked...worn. Blaine guessed his age to be somewhere around 30 to 35, which put him clearly older than Maggie's 26, but not that much. He just looked ragged and skinny, and not at all what Blaine would have pictured Maggie going for.

"Maggie!?" Blaine yelled again.

"Blaine? BLAINE! I'm in the bathroom. He's drunk! Blaine, the kids..." she began.

"They're fine...they're out of the apartment, don't worry " he yelled back. "I think it's time for you to move along." Blaine said calmly to Josh.

"And you're going to make me?" Josh answered belligerently. "Oh please..." he scoffed, staggering toward the wall. "Maggie...open the fucking door!" he screamed at her.

"I think the man asked you to leave, and by all appearances, the lady isn't happy with your presence either. Let's take this outside, asshole." Seb joined in. He was ready for a fight, craving it actually, to let off some steam and energy. Calling Josh "asshole" was his way of inviting the man to play.

Josh made a show of slowly turning around, cocking his head to the side and giving them a look that clearly said "really?" and then Josh turned and kicked the door again. "MAGGIE, open the God damn door!" he screamed.

Blaine turned and looked at Sebastian, and the look on Seb's face was almost resigned. He raised his eyebrows at Blaine and said "you want first dibs or can I?"

Blaine almost laughed. "Third times a charm?" he asked Seb. "Josh, is it?" Blaine said calmly, but clearly meaning business. "I think it's time for you to head out, and you have three seconds to move along or we'll drag your ass out!'

Josh, already irritated by the two, turned and lunged at them in the narrow hallway. Unfortunately, in his drunken state, he stumbled as he turned and missed both men when he threw a punch, landing flat on his face. This only fueled his anger, and he staggered up and went in search of something to hit. He swung at Seb, barely missing his face and only grazing his shoulder, then went after Blaine. In the tight confines of the hallway, any movement of arms was bound to hit something unfortunately.

"...the hell d'you think you are comin' in here when I'm ... ummmpphhh!" he huffed out when Seb caught him with a punch in the stomach. He was breathing heavy as if he was trying to catch the breath that had been knocked out of him.

"You threw the first punch, asshole, so now I'm just defending myself!" Seb shouted at him, dancing back on his feet easily.

Josh decided to try his luck with Blaine and lunged at him, both hands reaching for his throat, wanting desperately to pin him to the wall and make him stop yapping at him to leave. Blaine moved aside, but not before Josh's fist glanced off the side of his face near his eye. Josh wasn't expecting an uppercut, and didn't even attempt to dodge the shot from Blaine that nearly folded him in half as he hit his knees.

All three men were finally still, stuffed in the crowded hallway, and there was very little room to move. Josh, on his knees, raiased his hand as if in surrender, but when he started to stand, he spun and nailed Seb squarely in the jaw. Blaine waited for him to go down, or at least stumble back, but he stood his ground and grinned at Josh.

"That all you got?" Seb chuckled. "My four year old niece hits harder than that!" Blaine couldn't help but laugh at the stunned look on Josh's face.

"You think that's funny, bitch?" Josh bit out, lashing out at Blaine.

"What did you call me?" Blaine replied, calmly, but clearly considering being offended. "Yeah, this is over now." With one swift move, he nailed Josh under the chin with his left fist, then followed it with a right hook to the jaw. Josh hit the ground like a brick, out cold.

Sebastian's eyes grew larger and he cast an approving glance at Blaine.

"Nice move, Killer. I didn't know you had it in ya." he grinned, that cheeky little meerkat smile. "Fight club?"

"Yep, high school…." Blaine answered. "You?"

"Damn straight! Every chance I got….lot 'o steam to blow off back in those days."

Blaine smiled at him and they both glanced down at Josh in a heap on the hall floor. Bumping fists with Seb, Blaine gave him a sincere look.

"Thanks, man….I didn't know what to expect when I got here. Dude could have been 6'-5" and 300 pounds for all I knew."

"Not a problem…I think you'd have handled him anyway, even if he was that big. That was impressive…." Seb stated with a little too much snarky grin.

"Wouldn't have had a choice, I guess." Blaine said, clearly relieved that wasn't the case.

He focused on Maggie now.

"Maggie? Honey...he's out...you ok? Can you open the door?" Blaine yelled. He heard the lock click, and simultaneously sirens getting louder outside the building. Maggie cracked the door open and peeked out, clearly still afraid and shaken up. When she spied Josh on the ground, she flung the door open and nearly threw herself at Blaine.

"Oh my god...oh my god, how did you know to come over?" she wailed.

"The kids came over and got me. Well, it seems they got Kurt, who then came and got me with them."

"Kurt?" she questioned.

"New tenant..he's outside with them now. Actually, that's a funny story...for later on. Evee's pretty shaken up, and Matthew was almost hysterical. I think you should go get 'em while Sebastian and I hang out here with Mike Tyson." he grinned. The sirens had stopped now and the sound of feet stomping up the steps to Maggie's apartment on the second floor filled the hallway.

Maggie let go of Blaine and turned around to face Sebastian, hugging him tightly as well.

"Thank you. I'd like to be properly introduced as soon as I check on the kids if that's ok?" she smiled.

"I'd like that...but first, I think you should get some ice on that eye and maybe have it looked at." Seb said.

Maggie's right eye was red, split and swollen above her eyelid. Blood had run down her face and dried while she was in the bathroom.

"I think he's right, Mags. You don't want the kids to see that. It won't help the situation. But I think the cops need to see it first." Blaine said softly. Maggie just nodded.

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When the sirens started, Evee's arms moved up around Kurt's neck again and she clung to him as if her life depended on it. She still hadn't said a word. Her eyes were unfocused, wide open and glazed over and Kurt was terrified she was in shock. Matthew had finally stopped crying, but the sight of the police cars showing up clearly frightened him and he started sobbing again, hugging Kurt's side.

A number of officer's ran inside. A woman, who he'd later learn was 'Ms. Helen', had made her way out the door when the police arrived and was directing them upstairs. An officer was speaking to her as well and Kurt could hear her telling him what happened.

"I'm the building manager...I live across the hall from Maggie. That man just started pounding on her door and screaming and she was telling him to stop, but he was clearly intoxicated. He started kicking the door! My stars, I was so afraid for the girl when that lock gave way. The kids were screaming and Maggie was crying. I called ya'll right away."

"There are kids in the apartment?" the officer yelled in a panic. He immediately grabbed his radio and said "be advised, children on scene..." before Helen could point at Kurt and the kids. The officer paced toward them.

"These kids live here?" he asked Kurt.

"Yes, officer, they ran over to our building across the way, there, and came to a friend for help. He's inside with another tenant from across the street."

"Are the kids ok? Clearly they're shaken up, but are they physically harmed in any way?"

"I don't think so, but yes, they're obviously scared to death. What's going on in there? Why isn't anyone coming back out? The screaming stopped ages ago!" Kurt said, suddenly afraid of the reason for the noise ceasing. Seeing that the kids were as ok as could be expected, the officer who had been speaking to Kurt strode away toward Maggie's building to find out what was going on inside.

As if on cue, the door opened and two officers were hauling a clearly dazed Josh out the door. They paused to speak to the officer outside and one of the officers let go of Josh to open the car door and remove something from the back seat of the squad car and put it in the trunk.

Suddenly, Josh spotted Kurt sitting with the kids on the stoop and he snapped. In a flash of movement he jerked away from the officer still holding his arm and rushed Kurt and the children.

"Fucking kids!" he yelled. "And what the hell is this, a new boyfriend?!" he continued, hurtling his way towards Kurt as best he could while his hands were pinned behind his back in handcuffs.

Kurt's eyes flew wide and he immediately grabbed Matthew under the arms and spun him around away from Josh, curling in on himself to protect the kids in the closed doorway of the building. Matthew was screaming and Evee was now sobbing. Josh had just reached them when Kurt's body acted on instict and he let go of Matthew long enough to spin and throw a wild swing at Josh, sending him hurling to the ground with a thud, unable to break his own fall. His face and torso crashed to the pavement and he screamed in agony mere inches from Kurt and the kids.

The children were nearly hysterical again and Kurt was having trouble breathing because Evee was hanging on so tightly around his neck. He grabbed Matthew and hauled him back up to his hip to get him as far away from Josh as possible and started speaking soothing words in their ears again. The officers roughly dragged Josh away and shoved him into the back of the police cruiser.

Kurt was in pain...good Lord his hand hurt, but he was more concerned for the kids, who were openly terrified.

"Guys, he's gone. Turn and look...he's in the back of the police car and he can't get out. He's locked in there, ok? It's alright now. Let's go find your mom and you'll see that she's just fine..." he broke off, hoping his words weren't a lie. When he turned around from the safety of the closed door they were huddled in, he saw Blaine and Sebastian standing in front of Maggie's building with their jaws both hanging open, clearly in awe of what Kurt had just done.