Authors note - this fic is getting away from me. Things never go the way i plan. This chapter isn't meant to be here. BUT it is, i should probably mention i'm a person who reads fluff and can't write it. i also abhor angst but write it constantly. I think there will be one more chapter to this. then i'm done. I hope you like this, i cried a bit while i was writing it. (I don't expect you to, I'm a real cryer.)

Disclaimer - Oh? Glee is only an hour long? clearly not my doing then.

Dave's mind was spinning. His hands were shaking as he tried to unlock his car and he dropped his keys. He fell to his knees to retrieve them from underneath his car, he ended up curling up next to it. His large frame shook with sobs. He tried to tell himself, that it didn't matter, that he wasn't gay, but his mind kept telling him you're in love with him, and he hates you. Dave sat there crying next to his car for at least half an hour, eventually he heard the school being let out and people walking to their cars. He quickly got in his and drove home.

"Hey Dave!" Dave turned quickly at the voice. It was his favourite sound and he hadn't heard it in a while. Dave turned to find his Kurt shoving something into his hand.

"What's this?" He asked tentatively.

"It's an invite to my birthday party. If you want to come?" Kurt looked up at him, hopeful.

"Yeah, I'll be there, promise." Kurt smiled and Dave smiled back, he didn't understand why but Kurt could always make him smile. Kurt ran away quickly and into a nearby classroom, Dave realised he was late for class. He held the invite all through class, at lunch he sat with his teammates as usual.

"What's this?" Some boy they all called Azimo snatched the invite from Dave's hand.

"That's mine." Dave gave a weak protest. His teammates didn't like Kurt, they said he was weird, Dave knew they wouldn't like him going to his party. Azimo read it, and then turned to look straight at Dave.

"Are you going?" He demanded, using his height to his full advantage. Azimo was the biggest guy on the team. "Because" he continued "My dad said that kids like Hummel need to be taught a lesson. He said that people who are friends with people like Hummel need one too. What do you think Dave?" Dave stared up at Azimo then ducked his head and murmured in agreement. Azimo's dad was a doctor, and doctor's were right, weren't they? Azimo nodded and put the invite in the bin, he then sat down and finished eating his lunch. That was the day that Dave Karofsky learnt what it meant to have friends. He learnt that he shouldn't offer an opinion because no one would listen to him anyway and he learnt that what Azimo said was always right.

When he saw Kurt walking up the stairs with… him, it hurt.

"Excuse me." The tall, dark and handsome boy said, Dave looked at him and felt completely insecure, he couldn't compete with this guy. Dave couldn't help but ask.

"This your boyfriend, Kurt?" Kurt didn't say anything, he had a mask in place. A mask, which if Dave looked through carefully he could see fear and pity.

"Kurt and I would like to talk to you about something."

"I got to go to class." He pushed Kurt out the way, rubbing his hand down his sleeve as he went. He wondered if Kurt noticed that he didn't shove him like he would have just last week.

"Kurt told me what you did." Dave turned around trying not to show the betrayal, he wondered if Kurt's boyfriend had come to beat him up for kissing Kurt. He would have if the tables were turned. He faked ignorance.

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

"You kissed me." Kurt's voice spoke this time, and Dave felt sick, when the confrontation had been coming from a stranger it hadn't seemed as bad. The hurt and betrayed look that Dave could now see in Kurt's eyes was like a knife to his gut. He looked around even though he knew nobody was listening.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He looked into Kurt's eyes, pleading with him not to do this here. He heard the Boyfriend speaking again. He started to walk away. He knew that if he stayed his jealousy would get the better of him and he really didn't want to hurt Kurt anymore.

"It seems like you might be a little confused, and that's totally normal. This is a very hard thing to come to terms with and you should just know that you're not alone." He turned and slammed the kid against the wall.

"Do not mess with me." He didn't know what he would have done if Kurt hadn't grabbed his arm and pushed him away.

"You have to stop this."

He ran down the stairs. When he got far enough away he looked back to see Kurt and his boyfriend sitting on the stairs, he watched as the boyfriend patted him on the shoulder since Kurt was obviously crying. They got up and walked away. Dave turned away, he didn't think he could control himself if he saw them holding hands.

Dave woke up abruptly. The dream had changed again.

He walked past Kurt Hummel in the corridor with Azimo. Suddenly everyone disappeared and he looked at Azimo, and saw him on the floor punching Hummel. Dave tried to pull him off Hummel but he was a ghost and could only stand and watch. Azimo disappeared and Dave tried to get Hummel to wake up, he wouldn't. "Kurt?" He whimpered as he clasped the smaller boy's hand. Kurt opened his eyes and looked straight through Dave, his hand reaching out to someone behind him. Suddenly Dave was an outsider watching as Kurt's boyfriend carried him to safety.

Dave grabbed the scarf and breathed in the scent, it was fading but it still made him feel better. Dave didn't get up this time, or move. He lay on his bed crying, until he cried himself to sleep.

The day went by in a haze. He couldn't go to the locker room. He couldn't face his friends because he knew some of them would have seen Azimo by now. He ended up in the auditorium, he sat at the back in the dark and appreciated the serenity of the large hollow room.

"I'm sorry." Dave started at the voice behind him. "I didn't know anyone was in here I just wanted to practice…" the voice trailed off as it realised who it was speaking to.

"Oh, it's you." Dave didn't say anything, afraid he would cry if he did.

"I should go." Kurt turned to leave.

"Do you remember when we were friends? Dave asked quietly, he didn't know where that had come from, he wanted to ask if that guy was his boyfriend, if that kiss meant anything, if Kurt was going to tell anyone, but instead he asked that.

Kurt turned around and laughed. "Before you met Azimo? Yeah. Why?" Dave got up and went over to Kurt.

"I want to be friends again." Kurt looked at him appraisingly.

"Why?"

"My friends are all going to ditch me in a few days, because Azimo figured out what I am." Kurt huffed and turned to leave. "But mostly because I miss you, because all I want to do is be around you. I don't care that you have a boyfriend and that I'm not your type. Please just be my friend."

Dave's eyes were pleading. Kurt was quiet, Dave decided he must have been thinking it over carefully before replying. He looked away.

"Blaine isn't my boyfriend. He's just my friend. I'm sorry that I called you chubby. The truth is, I don't know what my type is yet. Dave, look at me." Dave looked up at the boy he'd fallen so deeply for.

"I waited eight years for you to realise you were wrong. Eight years for you to apologize for not coming to my party. Eight years for you to realize who and what your friends were and come back to me. Eight years I waited for my first kiss from you. I dreamt about you protecting me the bullies. You, becoming my hero, my knight in a letterman jacket. I wanted you to take me on a date and then give me your letterman jacket, I wanted to walk into the school wearing it, with your arm around me. But then you started helping them." Kurt's voice became hurtful and Dave looked away in shame.

"You pushed me lighter, punched lighter than the rest, but it hurt more. So I spent the next year getting over you. I focused on Finn, maybe because it was easier to handle his rejection than yours. Then you kissed me. So no, I can't be friends with you. I can't handle another eight years of rejection when you leave again." Kurt turned and left, his face was streaming with tears.

Dave crumpled to the floor, his mind was racing. He was in love with you, now he hates you. Well done, Karofsky. Dave stood up and left the auditorium, he needed to go home and think this through. He promised himself that he would protect Kurt, from now on. Even if Kurt didn't want to be friends, Dave would make sure that he didn't get hurt anymore. Dave was so confused that he didn't even notice that he'd left his letterman on the seat in the auditorium.