"Is he going to be okay?"

"I don't see why he shouldn't be. It's just a little hypothermia."

"Yeah, but I'm still worried. He was just standing out there. Standing stock-still in the cold in just his underwear. He didn't even say anything, and I know he heard me calling him. It was… it wasn't like Kurt. There was something wrong with him." Blaine sounded upset. Kurt stirred slightly, feeling and hearing the paper sheet underneath him crinkle beneath his weight. "Kurt?" Blaine was by his side in an instant, the other boy's hands wrapped tightly around his own.

Kurt's eyes fluttered open, taking in Dalton's hospital wing. "What? Blaine?"

"Are you okay?" Blaine asked.

The memories flooded back to him; Karofsky on the phone, telling him to stand there until someone found him. The panic in Blaine's eyes while Kurt could only feel cold and numb. The hungry whisper in his ear, telling him how beautiful he looked….

"I'm fine," Kurt whispered.

"You will be," The nurse stepped forward, all business under a cap of fading blonde hair. Kurt liked her; she was firm, but warm and confident. Kurt felt safe around her. "You need to drink this." She shoved a cup of something warm into his hands, "Followed by a few cups of water. We need to keep you hydrated. We sent a call to your father; he's on his way to check on you. I told him it wasn't necessary, but he can't help himself. He'll be here in about twenty minutes."

Kurt frowned, "Thank you."

"You're lucky, kiddo. Mr. Anderson found you just in time, and your roommate was quick to form a search party when he noticed you were missing. You were already at risk for severe hypothermia and frostbite when Mr. Anderson carried you in. If it weren't for the friends you have here, you'd be in the hospital getting some fingers and toes removed."

Kurt probably would have responded, but his mind was stuck on one thought. Blaine had carried him in? A sudden image came to him. It was of himself, limp and helpless, in Blaine's strong arms. Blaine's handsome face would be creased in worry as he looked down on him, desperate for a way to help. It was beautifully dramatic, but Kurt waved it away, drinking the warm fluid that tasted vaguely medicinal.

"How are you feeling?" Blaine asked, reaching for the cup the instant Kurt was done drinking from it.

"A little cold," Kurt said. 'A little terrified,' Kurt thought, but he didn't say that.

"Well, do you need anything? The Nurse is off getting you more water, she had to get it from a bottle because the pipes are clogged up on this floor, otherwise I would get it for you. Do you want more blankets? I can get you more blankets, it's no problem, and you'll be much warmer - "

"Blaine!" Kurt said. Blaine froze, his fingers wrapped in the wool of another blanket. "I'm fine, I promise. Please, just come here."

"Don't scare me like that," Blaine breathed, dropping into a chair next to Kurt's bed and spreading the blanket over him, "Please stop doing things like this. It scares me. What happened this morning?"

"Nothing."

"Stop lying," Blaine said. "Something happened this morning, I know it. There's something you aren't telling me, and that's okay, but just… know that I'm here to protect you, okay?"

"I'm not asking for your protection, Blaine."

"I'm not waiting for your permission, Kurt."

Kurt tried to be angry at Blaine, but the boy was too sincere. He took a deep breath, "Why are you doing this for me?" It was a decent question, in his opinion. No one had ever cared about him the way Blaine did. And the way Blaine was looking at him right now, his warm green-brown eyes melting, it felt almost like….

"I think I might be in love with you," Blaine said.

Kurt's mind jolted to a complete stop. He stared at Blaine, whose soft smile was slowly sliding off of his face. "I-" He tried to speak, but his brain wasn't sending the proper messages to his mouth. Blaine looked positively heartbroken.

"Oh," Blaine said, his voice dripping with hurt. "Oh, I didn't mean to…. I mean, of course you don't…. I'm really sorry, Kurt, forget I said anything. This wasn't the time to drop this on you, I've just been really confused lately and I thought that maybe you felt… I'm sorry."

Kurt wanted to shush him, maybe by crushing his lips into Blaine's. He wanted to reassure him, to tell Blaine that he'd been dreaming of this moment since the day they met. But there was too much going on right now and he just couldn't deal with all of it. Blaine looked like he was about to cry, he looked humiliated, and Kurt wanted nothing more than to make everything alright again.

"Kurt!" Burt chose that moment to walk in the door, his eyes instantly falling on his son. Blaine stood up, without a word, and practically ran out. Kurt stared after him.

Burt stayed with him the rest of the night, making sure he was warm and demanding that Kurt tell him what had happened. Kurt ran out of excuses after a while. "I got lost" "I felt too hot so I took my clothes off; it's a common symptom of hypothermia" "I took my phone so I could call someone if I got lost, but then I got confused". Eventually the accepted story was that Kurt had gone for a morning walk, gotten lost, and succumbed to the early symptoms of hypothermia. It was a fine excuse, and Kurt had gone with it, too exhausted to think of an alternative, despite the disbelieving look on his father's face.

Finally Burt left and Kurt was released to his room, sinking into bed, intent on falling asleep. It was only eight o'clock, but Kurt was too tired to care about the time. He sunk into unconsciousness with a sigh of relief.

His phone woke him at 11:45.

Kurt scrambled for it, half panicked in his semi-conscious state, "Hello."

"I don't like the way he was talking to you."

"What?"

"That prep school brat thinks he can steal my Kurt from me! And you just sat there, letting him say it, without even trying to stop him!"

"Let him say what?" Kurt asked, but the sinking in his stomach answered the question before Karofsky.

"I think I might be in love with you," Karofsky said in a high, breathless, voice, mocking Blaine. "Tell me, Kurt, what does this relationship mean to you? Because to me, it means loyalty. Can you be loyal, Kurt? Or do I have to take care of this myself?"

"What do you mean?"

"The pipes are clogged on the top floor, Kurt. The hospital wing and Dalton's upperclassmen dorms. None of the showers there are working, so the boys have to go to the underclassmen communal showers. So many stalls to hide in. And one stupid prep school boy who wanted to be alone. So I want you to listen, Kurt. Listen, hard. After all, this may be the last time you ever hear this."

The phone shifted, and Kurt could hear the low buzz of water, and a single voice echoing off the empty walls.

"Here we go again; I kinda wanna be more than friends. So take it easy on me. I'm afraid you're never satisfied…"

Kurt's heart squeezed tight.

"Blaine."