So much had been happening, and he'd been kept so busy by school and Glee Club and life that it was Wednesday before Blaine allowed himself to reconsider the assignment he'd been given by his therapist. He'd been putting it off for nearly an entire week, but Sectionals were 3 days away and he hadn't even decided what song he'd sing if he did, for whatever reason, decide to do what Cheryl had asked.

It was stupid. Wasn't it? Pointless, really. Which was why, when Wednesday's practice arrived and Mr. Schue suggested maybe they needed a break from the constant run-throughs of their set for Sectionals, and asked if anyone wanted to lead a number to warm everyone up, Blaine surprised himself by raising his hand. Over the voices and bantering of much more brilliant stars, Mr. Schue noticed Blaine's hand and, his brows lifting in surprise, said "Blaine, you want to sing something for us?"

He'd never done this before. What was he doing? This was absolutely insane. They were going to laugh at him, he was sure. He glanced over at Rachel, who was throwing him a death-glare. He should just say no. He should just…but no, this wasn't about them. Or Schue. Or even his mom, really. It was about him.

"Yes."

He stood, hands in his pockets, and went up to stand by Mr. Schue. "This is kind of an old song. But, uh, my mom really loved it, so…"

He leaned into Brad, told him the song title, and waited for confirmation that he knew it, before turning to face the group.

Brad started off with an improvised intro, and Blaine began by tapping the heel of his foot. When the cue came, he launched into an initially quiet version of "What a Girl Wants" by Christina Aguilera. The pianist slowed down his tempo to match Blaine's and turned what was a pop song into something that sounded a lot more like a ballad. After the first chorus, he launched into the first verse, finding his stride and letting the richness of his tenor voice, fill out the words.

Like a rock you waited so patiently, while I got it together.

While I figured it out, I only looked but I never touched,

'Cause in my heart was a picture of us:

Holding hands, making plans,

And it's lucky for me, you understand.

The rest of the club started joining him with the second round through the chorus.

What a girl wants, what a girl needs,

Whatever makes me happy and sets you free.

And I'm thanking you for knowing exactly...

What a girl wants, what a girl needs,

Whatever keeps me in your arms.

And I'm thanking you for being there for me.

A weaker man might have walked away, but you had faith

Strong enough to move over and understand, while I got it together.

While I figured it out, they say, "If you love something let it go.

If it comes back it's yours, and that's how you know.

It's for keeps, yeah, it's for sure."

And you're ready and willing to give me more [than]...

By the time he repeated the last chorus, half the Glee Club was dancing. Mike and Brittany had improvised their Valerie routine to match the music. But Rachel, for one, was not among those singing and enjoying the song. She sat through the whole performance, her eyes narrowed and her jaw tight.

Blaine belted out the last note in traditional Christina Aguilera fashion and Mr. Schue applauded. "Well done, Blaine! All right, guys, good job getting loose. Now let give Valerie a go, huh?"

Mike clapped Blaine on the back and Blaine couldn't help but smile crookedly at him as they both moved to take their places for the number.

"Why do you think that surprised you, Blaine?"

Cheryl at Blaine with an expression of polite curiosity.

Blaine thought about it, then answered, "I guess – because I thought it would make me feel less…"

Unlike most people, Cheryl never suggested words to end another's sentence, no matter how long it took the person to describe it themselves.

"…happy," he finally decided. "My mom died. I shouldn't be happy about it. Especially not when I sing a song that she and I…"

Cheryl smiled sympathetically. "Are you really happy about the fact that your mom is gone, though? Or do you think that maybe it just made you happy in general?" she asked, quirking her head to the side.

Blaine thought about it, and decided not to answer the question. "Anyway, I guess I just surprised myself because I really hadn't planned to do it until the opportunity presented itself and then I just…followed my gut I guess."

That was another thing Cheryl never did. She never forced someone to answer a question they chose not to answer. Though, she made a note to bring the conversation back around to it later.

"And how did the rest of the Glee Club react?"

Blaine shrugged. "Fine." After a moment, when it became clear Blaine wasn't going to elaborate, Cheryl nodded, accepting his answer.

"There's something else that I'd like to talk about with you, Blaine – if you're willing. Your father's spoke to me about some of the things that they learned you've been dealing with over this past month. I think they worried you might not bring it up on your own. I want to remind you that whatever you tell me will stay between us, but I think your dad's wanted you to have someone who you could talk to other than them about everything. Is there anything you want to tell me about?"

Her face betrayed nothing – no judgment, no pity, no disgust…nothing.

Blaine hesitated for a long time. It was a good few minutes before he finally just shrugged.

"OK," said Cheryl gently. "Why don't we start by you telling me his name so I know what to call him."

Another long pause. "Jeremiah," Blaine said. He looked uncomfortable, but Cheryl could usually navigate that type of discomfort – the type that resulted from the subject matter – not from discussing the subject matter with her specifically.

"OK. What would you like to tell me about Jeremiah…"

By the end of their session, which Cheryl had allowed to go over by a few minutes, Blaine actually felt a little bit better. He'd told Cheryl a little about the beginning and a little about the end of his relationship, and he'd admitted that since he'd cut Jeremiah out of his life and telling his fathers, he felt a lot better. His assignment that week was to write down at the end of each day one thing that made him feel happy that day, and if nothing made him feel happy at all, that was fine, too. It was another strange assignment in his opinion, but so far, Cheryl's assignments seemed to be two for two, so he knew before he even walked out of her office that he would do what she'd asked.

"Everything go well, Blaine?" Hiram asked. Blaine nodded.

"Where to, then?" Hiram asked. Blaine thought about it. He knew what Hiram meant. Glee was having a late practice for sectionals, and he could either join them for the second half of the practice or go home if he wasn't feeling up to it.

"School," he finally said. Hiram, secretly pleased, nodded and started driving them back to McKinley High.

The New Directions were half-way through a run-through of Valerie when Blaine entered the auditorium. Mr. Schue was on stage, dancing in his place for Tina's sake, since he'd been chosen to pair with her while Mike was dancing with Brittany up front.

As Blaine made his way down to the stage, a frustrated Mr. Schue called, "Cut! Come on, guys, where are your heads? Sectionals is two days away. Get it together!" Then, finally noticing him, called to him somewhat more patiently from where he stood on the stage. "Blaine – there you are. Come on up here and take your place, please."

Blaine could see he'd missed one hell of a practice and for a moment wished he'd told his dad to just drive him home. But it was too late now. He jogged up the stage stairs and took his place, smiling tightly at Tina, who looked about ready to murder somebody and was, for some reason unknown to him, dressed like a zombie cheerleader.

Mr. Schue's frustrated voice echoed from his place in the audience. "All right, guys, from the top!"

As Blaine walked home with Rachel that evening – well, really, it was more like walking home next to Rachel than walking home with her – he kept his earbuds firmly affixed in each ear. He was listening to Young the Giant, and without even realizing it, he'd started to hum along to Cough Syrup. Suddenly, a pair of narrowed gray eyes and a mop of curly blond hair caught Blaine's eye.

Blaine stopped in his tracks. Across the street, Jeremiah was watching him and Rachel. No – Jeremiah was glaring at him and Rachel. With arms crossed over his chest, Jeremiah stood like a nightmarish mirage behind the traffic whizzing by in both directions. Blaine lost his breath, his eyes widening. It wasn't until she ripped the earbuds from his ears that he realized Rachel had been calling his name.

He turned frightened eyes on her. "Blaine," she repeated, trying to snap him out of whatever was happening. He looked back across the street and for the barest moment, thought he'd imagined Jeremiah standing there. But then, after scanning up the street, he saw Jeremiah get into his old green Jetta.

"S-sorry. I just – Sorry."

He snatched the earbuds out of her hand. "Let's just go," he said and started walking a little more quickly towards the house.

"Blaine," she said, "What was that? Who was that guy?"

He didn't answer, but she just persisted, still not used to not getting her way and unwilling to give up that easily. "If you don't tell me, I'm going to tell our dads."

"Fine," Blaine said. That didn't bother him, he had already learned his lesson about keeping things. He planned to tell Hiram and LeRoy the first chance he got.

"Blaine."

This time, she grabbed his arm and he pulled it out of her grip, but he finally stopped and turned to face her. "Look, whoever that was, he was looking at both of us. You know something; so tell me. Now."

Blaine frowned, but finally growled and rolled his eyes. "Fine," he said exasperated, "But not here."

Grabbing her hand, he pulled her cautiously across the street and in the opposite direction they'd been walking until they reached the Lima Bean. There, he ordered a medium drip for himself and stepped aside for Rachel to order herself a caramel latte. After they'd gotten their order, he led her to a small table away from the other patrons. For a few minutes, he brooded, rotating hi cup slowly in his hands while Rachel blew on her latte and sipped it. When she finally settled down and looked up at him expectantly, Blaine breathed a sigh.

"That – is Jeremiah. I met him not long ago and we got – involved."

The color drained from Rachel's face. "Oh my god was he – tell me you aren't really in a gang," she whispered fiercely.

"What? No!" he said, a bit more loudly than necessary, then looked over Rachel's shoulder to ensure he hadn't attracted unwanted attention. How in the world had she gotten that from what he'd said? "No," he repeated. "We got involved romantically."

Rachel blinked, taken aback. "I…oh. I see."

Blaine propped his elbows on the table and rested his forehead on his hands. After a moment he raised his head again. "A little over a week ago he got violent. So I left him, OK? It's over. But we didn't exactly part on a good note."

That's when it happened. Finally, the pity he expected was there in Rachel's expression. "Oh my god, Blaine, I'm so sorry. I had no idea."

His expression tightened. "Don't – don't do that. Don't look at me like that," he told her.

"Look at you like what?" she asked, completely oblivious to what she was doing.

"Like I'm a victim. I'm not, OK?" Then he cursed and turned his attention to his coffee.

After a few moments of avoiding Rachel's gaze, she spoke again.

"Finn lied to me," she said. "I know it isn't the same," she added quickly. "But last year, he slept with Santana. And then he kept it from me. All this time." He looked up at her. "I don't know exactly what you're going through, but I do know what it's like to feel betrayed by someone who – who is supposed to love you," she said. The rage she felt at Finn had started to seep into her words.

Slowly, Blaine nodded. "A lot of that going around it seems," he said quietly, then met Rachel's eyes. She smiled at him, and, as if in spite of him, the corner of Blaine's lips twitched upwards into a smile of his own.