Title: A Sibling By Any Other Name
Author: an-alternate-world
Rating: M (starts mild, rating will go up in future chapters)
Characters/Pairings: Blaine/Kurt
Word count: 6,707
Summary: When Blaine is forced into finding a new family, he never expected to meet the people he did. He never expected his life to turn out this way. He never expected to fall so hopelessly in love so early in life. He never expected any of this. AnderBerry siblings, eventual Klaine.
Warnings/Spoilers: A vague re-writing of canon Glee, but there are some huge differences, which you'll see as you go along. Angst, fluff, a little bit of smut.
Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with Glee, FOX, Ryan Murphy or anything else related to the Glee universe.
He wasn't sure when he'd expected to hear from Kurt. He still felt like the bumbling younger brother of Rachel and he knew Kurt had his own friends, even if they weren't really there for him. He'd texted Kurt "COURAGE" just after lunch time and hoped it might help him get through the day.
Which was why seeing Kurt's name flashing across his screen just after classes let out surprised and concerned him.
"Kurt?"
"Oh my God, Blaine…Blaine…help…I…shit, God-"
He stopped in the middle of the hallway, Nick running into him as bodies swarmed in every direction to go to the dorms or go home. He could hear the ragged breathing and the choked sobs and the bubbling hysteria in Kurt's muttered curses was making Blaine panicky.
"What's happened? Are you okay? Jesus, Blaine, of course you're not okay, but are you safe?"
He felt Nick move in front of him, his hazel eyes piercing as Jeff hovered beside him.
"Kurt?"
"Shit. Blaine…fuck, okay, I…help? I need you? I'm sorry. I know it's a long d-drive but…please, please can you come?"
Blaine pushed past Nick and Jeff and joined the lagging students and headed for his car. It was rarely used but he had his permit, barely, and he fumbled with his phone as he pulled away from the school.
"Kurt, I need to know. Are you safe?" he repeated, cutting into Kurt's babbling monologue.
"Safe?"
He closed his eyes briefly because Kurt sounded so small and scared and God, what the hell had happened? "You haven't…you haven't hurt yourself have you? You aren't like, bleeding on the bathroom floor or something?"
Kurt's laugh was so broken and bitter that it did nothing to allay Blaine's fears.
"No, I'm in one piece. Not that it matters. Maybe I should. Maybe the pain wou-"
"Don't you even dare," he growled, speeding around a car that was going the speed limit which felt much too slow right now. "I don't want to get there and find you've hurt yourself, okay? You stay in one piece. You stay in one piece, Kurt."
Kurt snorted into the phone and Blaine bit his lip. "Kurt, look, I can't stay on the phone and drive at the same time. I'll see you as soon as I can, okay? Please, please take care of yourself until I get there."
"S-sure," Kurt mumbled and Blaine felt his heart swoop with worry.
"Kurt?"
"I'll curl up on my bed. I'll be fine. Drive safe."
Blaine stared at his phone briefly before tossing it onto the passenger seat and trying to drive as safely as he could while going as fast as he could. It still only cut twenty minutes off the two hour journey as he jumped from his car and sprinted up to Kurt's door.
"Kurt! I'm here! Let me in?" He pressed the doorbell multiple times and hopped from foot to foot as his stomach churned with anxiety.
The most glorious sound in the world was the locks clanking open and Kurt's eyes peeking out from behind the door.
"I won't hurt you," he reminded, trying to bottle up his own fears for Kurt's safety to recognise that Kurt was terrified again and he needed to slow himself down because tension was contagious.
Kurt cracked the door open wide enough for Blaine to slip inside and Kurt shut the door and twisted all the locks again.
"Kurt?"
Kurt shook his head and disappeared up the stairs. Frowning, Blaine toed off his shoes and followed him up the stairs, finding Kurt pressed against the headboard and clutching a pillow to his chest.
"Can I sit down on the bed, Kurt?" he asked, shuffling into the room.
Kurt eyed him like he was a stranger and Blaine felt his heart breaking all over again. Any success he'd made with Kurt days prior was lost in the latest bout of whatever had happened to Kurt at his school. Clearly frightened, Kurt gave the tiniest of nods and Blaine walked slowly to the bed, sitting on the edge as far from Kurt as he could get.
He wasn't sure what to do, because Kurt's unstoppable pleas and sobs from nearly two hours ago had left him wordless and trapped now that Blaine was here. So he looked at the carpet of Kurt's bedroom and started humming. He hummed Teenage Dream because it was on his mind and it had made Kurt happier the other day, and he remembered Rachel's complaints about Kurt trying to steal her solo of Defying Gravity so he started humming that next. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Kurt unfurled himself from around the blanket, his rigid posture abating as he listened, so Blaine kept going with whatever song he could think of that Kurt might like given his limited knowledge of the other boy and knowing that he basically clashed with Rachel over everything.
And somehow, he kept humming even as Kurt crawled over to him and looped his arms through one of Blaine's. His cheek brushed against the top of Kurt's hair as he kept humming, fingers outstretched as an offering to Kurt, and his heart fairly soared when Kurt clutched at his hand and held it against his heart like a child seeking comfort. Eventually his throat grew tired and he fell silent, letting Kurt breathe against him and feeling the indistinct thudding of Kurt's heart against the tip of his fingers that were nestled in the fabric of Kurt's shirt.
"He kissed me," Kurt whispered, so soft Blaine thought he had misheard. "The fucking Neanderthal kissed me and then he tried to kiss me again even as I stood there and was so terrified I couldn't breathe."
Blaine tried to keep breathing normally, tried to not belie how his whole body had seized up with rage.
"I guess I'm lucky there was no gym class last period because I had a panic attack on the floor of the locker room and I was so scared," he whimpered, fingers tightening around Blaine's unconsciously as he re-lived the fear. Blaine leaned in closer as much as he dared and tried to do what he could to make Kurt feel protected but not suffocated by his presence.
"When I… When I managed to calm myself down and retrieve my phone from where he'd tossed it in the corridor, your message was the first thing I saw and I was dialling it as I ran from the school." He tilted his face up and looked at Blaine, silent tears marring his face. "I didn't think you'd actually come."
Blaine pressed his lips against Kurt's forehead. "I'll always be here for you, okay? I'll always come if you need me."
Kurt smiled weakly before he sucked in a breath and broke into quiet sobs.
"Oh God, Kurt," Blaine breathed, wrapping his free arm around Kurt as securely as he could, cradling Kurt's body to his chest as he hummed nonsense tunes, anything to distract Kurt from whatever he was thinking.
"Did you just start humming Mary Had A Little Lamb?" Kurt giggled through his tears, wiping his eyes with the heel of his palm.
"I ran out of tunes that didn't have words I wanted to sing along to," Blaine mumbled, cheeks pink at Kurt gave a snuffly kind of snort.
"Sometimes I forget how young you are," Kurt teased as he wiggled his fingers in Blaine's grip.
"Yeah, I know. Those ten months between us really shows how I must be on the cusp of maturing into a grumpy, old teenager, rather than a joyous young one who still likes nursery rhymes."
Kurt giggled again and Blaine was glad the crying had stopped. It wasn't like Rachel's hysterics over nothing. It just made Blaine ache with sadness because someone as kind as Kurt, who was clearly so traumatised by his school, didn't deserve anything like this. It reminded him of how he felt for Eliza. He'd drop her a message when he got back to Dalton.
"Will you tell me who it was that kissed you?" Blaine asked quietly. Kurt froze, his grip on Blaine's hand suddenly tight to the point of hurting. "You don't have to," he said hurriedly, because the tension was back and oh God Blaine, way to put your foot in it.
"Karofsky," Kurt whispered. "He…he's one of the jocks. With Finn and Puck and Mike and Sam."
Blaine squeezed his eyes shut as he cuddled Kurt to him again. Where the hell were these supposed friends who played with this jerk and sang with Kurt? Why weren't they protecting him?
"Kurt, I…I want to ask you something and…and you can say no, but, I want you to know that I want to do this, okay?"
Kurt peered up at him, eyes red from crying and Blaine remembered a much younger Kurt, a Kurt who cried against Rachel's tummy because his mother had died and how jealous Blaine had been because he wanted to comfort Kurt. And here he was, comforting Kurt, and Blaine just felt broken because none of this was Kurt's fault and he just wanted to help him and fix him and it wasn't fair.
"I…I want to go to school with you tomorrow. I want to find this guy and try and talk with him. I wan-"
"He'll tear you apart!" Kurt interrupted, voice high as anxiety washed over him. "He's huge, Blaine. He told me not to tell! I don't know if he's gay! I don't care! You can't, you can't! If you got hurt-"
"I won't get hurt," Blaine said, silencing Kurt with the softest of fingers to his lips. "I'll be okay. I can take care of myself. I just want to talk to him. That's all."
"But what if he-"
"We'll make sure it's somewhere public. Where people will see him, see us, and make sure that he won't do anything, okay?"
Kurt wasn't convinced but he couldn't say anything because he heard the rattle of his father's truck.
"My dad's home," he said, as if the doors slamming weren't enough for Blaine to figure out.
"I haven't seen him in a while. How's he doing?"
Kurt shrugged as he untangled himself from Blaine and inhaled deeply several times. "He hates the organic stuff we have to feed him on because of his heart attack earlier this year."
"I'm glad he's okay," Blaine said, touching Kurt's shoulder as they headed down the stairs to greet him.
"Hey Dad," Kurt said, too bright and too cheerful for Blaine after he'd been so upset and scared and crying. But Burt barely had eyes for his son as he saw Blaine behind Kurt.
"Aren't you Rachel's brother?"
"Dad," Kurt hissed.
"It's okay, Kurt," Blaine hushed him. "Yes. Blaine Anderson. I haven't seen you in a while, sir. I'm glad to hear your health is improving though."
Burt grunted as he handed some of the groceries to Kurt. "This whole wheat bread is disgusting. And I can't have salt on anything!"
Honestly, Blaine couldn't sympathise because he didn't think he'd ever had whole wheat bread and he wasn't a fan of adding salt. "That's terrible, Mr. Hummel. Although I'm sure if you follow the guidelines, you'll soon be able to enjoy what you usually like to eat."
Burt's gaze was narrowed as looked Blaine up and down and he recognised where Kurt got his intense examination skills from.
"So, what brings you to Lima?" he said finally as Blaine grabbed a couple of bags and headed for the kitchen. He heard the underlying meaning: what brings you to my home?
"I missed my sister and I heard Kurt was-" He saw Kurt's frantic face a fraction before the words spilled out. "I heard Kurt was needing some help with a Glee project so I thought I'd lend an ear to his ideas."
Burt glanced between Blaine and his son. "Didn't know you two knew each other that well," he said gruffly.
"Blaine's been part of the Dalton Glee choir for years," Kurt offered. "He's their soloist now."
"Huh, just like your sister then? Stealing the limelight?"
"Dad."
Blaine flushed, although it wasn't an entirely unfair comparison really. He was Rachel's brother. "We don't have a teacher who hands us solos on a silver platter every time. We have a council and we have to audition each time there's a solo up for grabs." He shrugged and handed a bag of apples to Kurt. "If they select me more times than they choose the other guys, then I'm just grateful for the opportunity."
Burt was staring at him again and he felt his neck heating up with nerves.
"You could teach your sister a thing or two about humility and sharing," he said with a hint of a smile.
"Dad."
Blaine snorted. "Honestly Mr. Hummel, I tried a long time ago to teach Rachel about sharing songs. It's part of why I refuse to attend the same school as her. I have to listen to her on the phone enough."
Burt started chuckling and Kurt's cheeks were pink. Blaine felt like he'd won some sort of award for hearing both Kurt and his father laugh in the same day given all the underlying tensions.
"You're alright, kid," Burt said with a firm pat to Blaine's shoulder.
Blaine felt slightly bewildered even as he smiled. "Well, thank you sir. It was nice seeing Kurt. I hope I helped but I need to get going home now. I think I'll stay there and head back to Dalton in the morning."
He caught Kurt's eye and Kurt gave a brief nod before turning away to start digging out ingredients for dinner.
"Safe trip, Blaine," Burt said, heading up the stairs to get changed out of his greasy overalls.
Kurt followed Blaine to the door and watched as he pulled on his shoes.
"Thank you. Again. It seems like all I do is cry on you and thank you," Kurt mumbled as he paused in the doorway while Blaine stood on the porch.
"If I've made you feel better Kurt, then you can cry on me and thank me as much as you need."
The edges of Kurt's lips twitched as he reached for Blaine's hand. Blaine slipped their fingers together and squeezed it briefly before Kurt pulled it back.
"I'll…see you in the morning?" Kurt asked nervously.
"You have a break, right? Like a recess? I'll be in my car in the parking lot. Come find me and then we'll see if we can find him, okay?"
Kurt nodded and Blaine gave his wrist a quick touch like Kurt had done the other day before shoving his hands in his pockets and heading down the walkway towards his car. He gave Kurt a wave and then climbed in, turning the key in the ignition and driving away.
"Blaine? What the hell are you doing here? It's a week night!" Rachel shrieked, pulling him inside and closing the door behind him.
"Blaine?"
"Hey Papa," he greeted, kissing his father on the cheek. "Dad working late?"
"Always," his father rolled his eyes and headed back to the kitchen.
"Blaine." Rachel stamped her foot. Always the centre of attention, that one.
"I missed you," he shrugged, deciding that he really didn't want to betray Kurt's trust. "I felt homesick and wanted to drop by."
"It's Tuesday. You could have come on the weekend!"
He shrugged again as he left his shoes by the door and went towards his bedroom. "Sometimes when you want something, you don't care when it is, you just go for it."
He shut the door in her frowning face and fell onto his bed with a sigh. He was going to McKinley tomorrow to face the sort of guys that had made him go to Dalton in the first place. What the hell had he gotten himself into?
Both Kurt and Blaine slept fitfully that night, tormented by the possibilities that might occur when confronting Karofsky. Blaine was perhaps more anxious than Kurt, because he only had Kurt's word for how big the guy was and perhaps in his emotional state Kurt had exaggerated. Not that Blaine would ever say that to Kurt's face. It was just a feeling. And a fear.
Kurt was shaking when he tapped on the glass of Blaine's car. Blaine tried to take his hand but Kurt twitched away and Blaine let him. He knew McKinley was a homophobic environment. He knew Kurt was uncomfortable. He didn't want to pressure Kurt into something, even if it was just holding hands.
Kurt saw Karofsky on the staircase and Blaine tried to talk to him, but his fearfulness rose sharply when he was thrown into the fences. He could see Kurt's terror but he kept his composure and when the bully stormed away, he shuffled over to where Kurt was trembling with his arms around his knees.
"He's gone," Blaine murmured, holding his hand out steady for Kurt to see. Cautiously, Kurt slipped his fingers between Blaine's again and tucked it into his chest. "I'll buy you lunch, okay? Let's get away from here."
Kurt gave a wobbly sort of nod and let Blaine lead him out of the school and towards Blaine's car. He dropped Blaine's hand so Blaine could drive and they found a small café. Kurt picked at his salad and Blaine tore his sandwich into shreds and the silence screamed so loudly.
"I have Glee this afternoon," Kurt whispered finally as he stabbed at a piece of tomato.
"Do you actually want to go?"
"The other boys screwed up and now they have to sing for a teacher's forgiveness. We've had to change songs and choreography because of it," Kurt explained, staring at the salad as if it had offended him.
"Sounds ridiculous."
Kurt shrugged. "It is but…I still have to go back."
"Okay." Blaine managed to chew a mouthful and swallow it. "Do you want to just like, hang out at the park until practice?"
Kurt peered up at him. "You'd wait with me?"
"Sure," Blaine smiled. "Come on."
Kurt directed him to a park near the school and they sat in the car, watching the fiery leaves drift to the ground.
"Are you going to be okay?"
Kurt blinked at him. "No. And no one will care either."
"I care."
"No one at McKinley, then."
Blaine frowned. "I could talk to Ra-"
"Don't you dare talk to Rachel," Kurt interrupted. "Don't you dare. I've tried. I've tried talking to her and Mercedes. I've tried telling the boys. Nothing's happened. Nothing has mattered." He sounded so resigned it scared Blaine. "I won't be okay but I'll survive because that's what's expected of me."
"Kurt-"
"No, Blaine."
The silence in the car felt stifling as Blaine's eyes tracked falling leaves. Hearing Kurt's sniffle, he turned, alarmed, to see Kurt silently crying.
"What's wrong?"
"I'm sorry," Kurt sobbed, pulling at his hair. "I'm sorry. I didn't…no one's cared and I feel like I barely know you but you care, you care, and I'm just biting your head off and then you'll go an-"
"Go? Where am I going to go?"
"You'll leave me and I'll be alone again and-"
"Kurt, Kurt, stop," Blaine commanded, sliding his fingers between Kurt's and working his hands free from ripping tufts of hair out of Kurt's head. "Listen to me. Look at me." Kurt gazed at him tearfully and there was such sadness and fear and desperation that Blaine's heart ached. "Kurt, I'm not going anywhere. I mean, sure, I have to go back to Dalton, but you still have my number. You know where I stay at Dalton. You know where I live when I'm back here at home with Rachel."
He squeezed Kurt's hands and released one, raising it as slowly as he could to Kurt's face. Kurt's forehead creased with worry before he closed his eyes, and he only shuddered a little when Blaine finally cupped his cheeks and wiped the tears away.
"You can try to push me away as much as you want, as much as you think you can," Blaine soothed. "But you forget I live with the most stubborn girl in the whole of Ohio. I've learned a thing or two about patience."
Kurt's eyes flickered open and he gave a weak smile, wrapping his hand around Blaine's wrist and tugging the hand off his face.
"I won't make you promise, but-"
"I promise, then," Blaine said. "I promise. I promise I'll always be here for you. I'll always be someone you can contact. I'll always be someone who will listen and care and come to Lima if you need me as much as you did yesterday."
Kurt didn't have any words as he stared at the honesty all over Blaine's face. His fingers shook faintly as he reached for Blaine's shirt and blazer and wrapped his arms around Blaine in an awkward hug over the centre console of Blaine's car. Blaine knew he shouldn't be smiling because Kurt was still in tears but Kurt had hugged him. Kurt had actually approached him without asking and hugged him! He felt like dancing, but he contained the desire and instead held Kurt as protectively as he could.
When Kurt left to return to school, Blaine felt like a part of him was going with Kurt. He just hoped that that part would give Kurt the strength to keep fighting and he hoped that maybe Karofsky would leave him alone now, for Kurt's sake more than anything else.
"Anytime, okay?" he reminded Kurt. Kurt nodded and squeezed his hand before getting out of the car and returning to the halls of horror, as Blaine had started thinking.
He didn't hear from Kurt for a couple of weeks, but he did get several hysterical calls from Rachel about their choir director being sick and a substitute who kept trying to shake things up. Then the sub performed a song with Rachel and Rachel was her new biggest fan. Blaine rolled his eyes, itching to ask his sister how Kurt seemed to be doing because whenever they'd hang out – he'd managed to get tickets to Rent last week and had dinner with Kurt and Mercedes a few days prior – Kurt kept deflecting the conversation to be about Glee club and the songs they were performing. But Blaine knew if he started asking after Kurt, she would start asking both Blaine and Kurt questions that neither wanted to face right now so he kept his mouth shut and listened to her raving about the latest monstrosity she'd heard by this substitute.
He was floating on the idea that no news was good news, until he got a text from Kurt late Wednesday afternoon after Warbler practice. He laughed at something Thad was saying as he took out his phone, before he stopped breathing at the words printed across the screen.
'He says he'll kill me if I tell anyone else. Why not save him the trouble?'
He could hear some of the boys yelling after him as he darted out of the room, finger pressing at the stupid screen to dial Kurt's number. And it rang and rang and rang and he knew Kurt had only just sent the text but he didn't answer the phone. Blaine's heart started to nurse his stomach with how far it had sunk as he tried again, but again Kurt ignored him.
Frantic, he dialled his sister.
"Blaine? What-"
"Rachel? Where are you?" he interrupted.
"At school preparing for a number we're doing with Holly and Schue. Why?"
"Is Kurt with you?"
"Kurt?" He could hear the confusion in her voice and the talking of students in the background. He raised his eyes to the ceiling, a silent prayer. "Yeah, he's here. Looks a little distant but he's standing by Sam and Mike."
Blaine released the breath he hadn't even realised he was holding. "Can you put him on, Rach? I need to have a word with him."
"With Kurt? I didn't know you two were close."
"Just put him on, Rachel," he ground out. She huffed and he could hear movement as he slid down a wall and tucked his knees to his chest.
"Hello?"
"What the fuck sort of a message was that to send someone and then not answer the phone?"
"Blaine, I-"
"No, don't you say you're sorry, Kurt. Don't. Jesus, I thought I'd have to start speeding to Lima and stop you from slitting your wrists or jumping off a bridge or something," he said, wiping at his eyes roughly. "You don't get to make…make statements like that in a text and then not answer the phone, okay? Because I'm going to think the worst and I'm going to freak out and next time you might not be with Rachel and I can't stand the panic I felt in waiting to hear your voice."
"I'm not that important though."
Blaine choked on his words. "Not that…? God, Kurt. You're so important. You're fast becoming one of my best friends. Please don't ever think that."
He heard the voices in the background quieten and then a door press closed. "Sorry, I needed to get away from them."
"It's…it's fine. What…did your text mean? He's threatened to kill you?"
"Y-yeah, this morning. He said if I told anyone else, he'd…he'd…" Kurt's voice caught and Blaine wished he could teleport to Kurt's side and hold him.
"I know what he said, but Kurt, you have to tell someone. You can't walk around the school with a death threat over your head."
"I know that in my head but I'm so scared," Kurt whimpered, and Blaine squeezed his eyes shut because he knew what Kurt's face must look like and he felt so useless sitting here in a Dalton corridor.
"Can you come here maybe? Like, transfer?"
"We don't have that sort of money, Blaine. Dad's still paying off his medical bills a-and I can't just leave Glee club a few weeks before Sectionals."
"Have you told any of them?"
"God no."
Blaine sighed and chewed his lip. He was out of options. He knew he should tell someone, he should tell anyone, but the only person he really knew from the group was Kurt and Rachel and more recently Mercedes. And Mercedes had been clearly disinterested in anything Kurt had to say the other night.
"Blaine, I-I need to go. We're performing a mash-up thing. I'm sorry."
"It's okay," he whispered, running a hand across his gelled hair. "It's okay. Just…don't send me a message like that again. Not something that could be read as a suicide message, okay? Unless you actually want me to panic so badly I can't breathe."
"Sorry."
Blaine wished he could soothe it away with cuddles but Kurt was just too far away. "It's okay," he said again. "I'll talk to you soon, okay? Keep me in the loop."
"I will." Kurt sniffled and Blaine's heart hurt again. "Thank you for caring."
Before Blaine could respond, Kurt had already clicked off the call and he was left clutching his phone uselessly and tapping his fingers on his knees.
"Everything okay?"
He just about jumped out of his skin. "Not really, no," he replied as Wes sat beside him. "But there's nothing much I can do."
"I overheard the part about the suicide message," Wes cringed. "Sorry. You just left so fast and…is it someone here? Is someone in danger?"
Blaine stared at his hands. "No, it's not someone here. As to the other part…I don't know. I honestly don't know, Wes. Someone I know got kissed against his wishes and today the person responsible made a death threat. So he's sort of upset."
"Jesus," Wes breathed. His hand covered Blaine's anxiously moving fingers and gripped it hard. "What are you going to do?"
"There's nothing I can do. He won't tell anyone at his school because he's too scared."
Wes nodded. "It's understandable. If you need someone, you can talk to me, okay?"
Blaine smiled tiredly. "Thanks Wes. Do you mind if I skip the rest of rehearsal today? My emotions at the moment…"
"It's fine. Go back to the dorms. I'll see you tomorrow at lunch, okay?"
Blaine nodded and Wes pulled him to his feet. "Thanks."
"Don't do this alone," Wes said firmly.
Blaine nodded again and wandered back to his dorm in a daze. Kurt's life had been threatened. What on earth was he meant to do now?
He heard through one of Rachel's many calls that Kurt's father was getting married to Finn's mother, which explained the lack of calls and texts from Kurt in the past week. Rachel told him how Kurt was throwing the wedding together as fast as he could, although she wasn't sure why, and that the Glee club were going to perform songs.
And oh, how he wanted to be there, except he was singing several solos at a concert the Warblers were doing at a retirement home. Rachel was disappointed but not half as much as Kurt would be when he heard through her that Blaine wasn't going to attend.
He then got a call a few days later saying that the other boys in Glee who were on the football team had tried to take on Karofsky. Sam was sporting a black eye but Karofsky seemed to have backed off a little even though Kurt seemed more distracted than usual, but Rachel babbled that it was probably just wedding planning, and wasn't it exciting that Kurt and Finn were going to be brothers?
And then he got the call from Rachel he'd been dreading, shrieking about how Burt had bailed up Karofsky in the corridor and Kurt had told Finn that his life had been threatened. She was hysterical and he had difficulty getting a word in to say it was going to be okay, but it would be okay, because he knew now that Burt was aware of it, Mr Hummel could take care of Kurt and the situation. He told Wes later how relieved he was, because it meant that the burden was no longer only his, and Wes had rubbed his back and shared his sentiments. Blaine hadn't been able to tell Rachel he already knew about the threat, because he was sure she would either explode on the phone or turn up at Dalton and then explode in his face and he'd had enough explosions out of his sister to last him several lifetimes.
It was while he was singing at the retirement home and instead thinking of the wedding that was taking place that the most absurd notion occurred to him. He faltered in his steps and David grabbed for him but he was okay and standing and kept singing because if Rachel had taught him one thing, the show must go on. He pushed the unbidden thought from his mind for as long as he could, greeting the old people and smiling and chatting with them for what felt like hours about their life stories and some were truly fascinating but Blaine honestly just wanted to check out mentally and think more about the thought he'd had in the middle of his song.
"You alright?" Wes asked Blaine as he boarded the bus.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm…just, just a moment of distraction," he said, taking his seat and dumping his bag on the seat beside him because he needed to be left alone. The other boys recognised the sign and found other seats away from him as he stared out the window at the passing scenery.
If Finn's mother married Kurt's father, and then Rachel married Finn, that would make Kurt and him brothers-in-law, right? His eyes widened at the implications of what would seem like marrying his brother if he was ever interested in Kurt and shook the thoughts clear out of his head. No, he needed to look after Kurt, needed to give Kurt the strength to fight back and survive his adolescence and mature into an adult who was truly fabulous. He didn't love Kurt and he certainly wasn't going to marry him.
How ridiculous.
When Nick roused him early the following Saturday morning, Blaine had half a mind to tell the brunette that he was going to have his throat cut when Blaine was more awake and a knife was more available.
"New kid! Down the corridor. Come on, come on," Nick said, tugging Blaine clean out of his bedroom in his sweats and t-shirt. At least he'd slept in something more than his boxers last night, he supposed. They hadn't had a new student move in for a while, never in the middle of the year, and never on the weekend. A mass of students had formed around the door to the empty dorm room and Blaine stood on his tip-toes to try and see over everyone, even though it was stupid because he was still shorter than everyone else by several inches.
"Don't you all have beds to be sleeping in or something? It's nine on a Saturday!"
Blaine knew that voice!
He pushed forward, ignoring the yelps and grunts as he squeezed through the crowd.
"Mr Hummel!"
Kurt's father stared at him for a moment before recollection flickered in his eyes. "Blaine, right? Rachel's brother?"
"Yes sir," Blaine dipped his head as he shooed some of his dorm mates away. "Kurt's coming to Dalton?"
Burt sighed and took his cap off his head to rub at the scattering of hair that remained. "Did you know about the bullying?"
"I-" Blaine waved his hands at the lingering boys who scowled and headed back to their rooms. "I had a little bit of an idea, yes."
Burt eyed him critically but didn't challenge him. "There was a kid who threatened his life. I found out a couple of weeks ago and took it up with the school. The principal expelled him but it got turned over yesterday because no one actually witnessed the threat," Burt scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Honestly, the other kid is a hundred pounds more than my son and several inches taller. There's clearly something more going on and Kurt's terrified."
"So Ka- Kurt's coming here?" Blaine amended.
Burt caught the slip but again, didn't question it. "Couldn't let my son stay at a school he was scared of," he grunted. "Do you want to come in? He should have unpacked a few things by now."
Blaine nodded quickly and Burt opened the door. Kurt stood with his hands on his hips as he sorted books onto a shelf.
"Kurt, you have-"
Kurt turned around and saw Blaine, then started hopping over his things and flinging his arms around him. "I'm so sorry I didn't keep you in the loop. Dad got married and it's been so crazy and-"
"Shhhh," Blaine whispered, arms encircling Kurt's waist and rubbing his back gently. "It's okay. I've had vague updates from Rachel and your father told me a few things outside."
Kurt breathed into his neck and Blaine thought it was so nice that Kurt hadn't needed to adjust to him before touching him. It made for a nice change.
Burt cleared his throat and Blaine realised he'd completely forgotten that Kurt's father was in the room. He blushed crimson as Kurt pulled back.
"Just a friend, huh?" Burt asked, eyebrow raised.
Kurt looked at Blaine nervously before meeting his father's eye. "Blaine's been supportive of me and things that have been happening the past couple months, where New Directions failed to listen."
Burt's gaze softened slightly before he made a gruff sort of noise and looked back at Kurt's things. "Are you going to be okay with this?"
"You know I can't stay in Lima for now, Dad," Kurt murmured, eyes darting between his father and the floor.
"I know, I know, I just…my baby boy has never been so far away," Burt muttered, moving over to Kurt and touching his shoulders. Blaine saw the wince but he didn't think Burt did. "I'm expectin' you to keep an eye out for him, alright? And no funny business!"
"Dad!"
Blaine smiled and held his hand out to Burt. "I'll do my best sir. With keeping an eye out, I mean."
Kurt's entire face was flushed and Blaine thought it looked quite adorable. Burt glanced between them before gripping Blaine's hand so tightly Blaine thought he might have some broken fingers.
He kept his face carefully neutral as Burt grunted and gave his son a hug before Kurt followed his father to the car, leaving Blaine in Kurt's new room. He pulled out his phone and hit his sister's number.
"You could have told me Kurt was coming here," he hissed when she picked up.
"I thought you would have already known!"
"I got pulled out of bed this morning by a friend and heard Burt's voice! I had no idea!"
He heard her burst into tears and immediately felt terrible. "Oh God, Blaine. I feel so awful! I wasn't there for him nearly enough lately!" she sobbed, and Blaine felt at least a little cheered by the fact she acknowledged her faults. "And so close to Sectionals! How are we going to win now without him? He harmonises with my voice so well!" Or not.
"Rachel, this isn't about the competition right now!" he said, striding across the room to stare out Kurt's window. He had a pretty nice view of the grounds and Blaine hoped Kurt would find it as soothing as Blaine did to just sit and stare at nature sometimes.
"I know it's not! I can't believe they let that mammoth come back! I can't believe he threatened Kurt's life and basically got away with it! He chased Kurt away, Blaine!" she babbled through her tears.
"I know Rach, I know. But Kurt's here now and you know he'll be safe at Dalton. I'll take care of him an-"
"You'd better take care of him," she snapped.
"You know I will, Rachel. I'll keep him company and introduce him to Nick and Jeff and Wes. He'll be okay here. You look after your competition woes and I'll take care of your friend."
"Way to make me sound shallow, Blaine."
He bit his tongue at the last moment and forced a smile. "Sometimes you have very questionable motives."
"And what's that meant to mean?"
"Look Rach, I have to go. Help Kurt settle in, all that sort of thing. I'll talk to you soon. Say hi to Finn for me!"
He hung up quickly and shoved his phone back in his pocket.
"She's more concerned about Sectionals than me leaving, huh?" Kurt asked quietly from the doorway. Blaine jumped in shock and whirled around. "It doesn't surprise me. She's always been a bit insane and now she won't have me competing for her solos."
"Kurt-"
Kurt shut the door and sighed. "It's okay, you don't need to make excuses for your sister."
"I'm not like her."
Kurt smiled weakly as he crawled onto his bed. "I know you're not. You actually care."
"I'm glad you're starting to recognise that," Blaine replied as he wandered over to Kurt and sat on the edge of the bed. He slowly raised his hand and brushed Kurt's hair back off his face, Kurt managing to not cringe away.
"Can I….ask you to do something for me?" Kurt asked as he blinked up at Blaine.
"I suppose it depends on the demand," Blaine reasoned, although he knew he'd struggle to deny Kurt anything.
"Can you just…can you hold me? Please?"
Blaine saw the vulnerability all over Kurt's face and even though he felt like it was incredibly intimate, he nodded, shifting until he lay down beside Kurt. Kurt rolled over and Blaine pressed up behind him, linking their fingers together. Once again, Kurt held it against his heart where Blaine could feel the thrumming beat and Kurt breathed in deeply.
"Thank you," he murmured.
Blaine squeezed at the hand he was holding gently. "Anytime."
A/N: I am so completely blown away by the continual support of my fabulous reviewers. If you don't login for your review so I can't reply to it, let it be known that I would be sending you messages of thanks as well. To those who favourited this after only a chapter, wow, thank you! To those who put this on alert, I am so blessed you think it's worth reading more of this story. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope Rachel isn't continued to be hated too much for her faults as a child and being a meddling sister!
Thank you so much to everyone reading. I am truly, trully blessed and so thankful. I hope everyone who celebrates Christmas had a wonderful time - and if you didn't, then I'm sending you my thoughts and some snuggles. Love always xx