Chapter 2: Get Away
Every morning, Blaine woke up at five in the morning and left for school just a half hour later. He would get dressed quickly and gel his hair and brush his teeth before heading to the Lima Bean for his morning coffee and breakfast. Sometimes, he woke up even earlier, like when he needed to shower that morning if he hadn't the night before. He did all of this because he knew his father woke up to leave for work at six o'clock sharp, and Blaine hated interacting with him in any way unless he absolutely had to.
So, Tuesday morning, he went through his usual routine, waking up at 4:30 a.m. so he could shower. He wanted to try and cover up his bruises on his face with his mother's foundation, but there were too many. He was almost certain his nose was dislocated, if not broken. It had swelled up pretty bad and bruises replaced his usual dark circles under his eyes, leaving splotches of black and blue and red over the bridge of his nose as well.
After his shower, Blaine stood in front of the mirror, looking over his bare body. He looked so small, the slight outlining of his ribs poking out from underneath his skin; his collar bone slightly more defined that it should be; his stomach, shoulders, and face covered in bruises. The sight made him want to cry. He took a shaky breath in and let it out through his nose, wiping at his eyes before going to his bedroom, which was connected to the small bathroom. He quickly got dressed. He finished the outfit with a navy blue bowtie to match his black jeans and white cardigan over a baby blue polo. He looked good, he thought to himself. Then he styled his hair lightly, letting some of the curls peek out in the front, though they were still well-controlled with years of practiced styling.
Then, he was ready to go. He grabbed his school bag, crept down the stairs so as not to wake his parents, and snuck out the door to his car. He knew he would be early to school, but that just meant that he could grab his things from his locker without being met by Karofsky and the rest of the football team. The day before, he'd been running late and had barely managed to get out the door before his father woke up, so he wasn't able to dodge the jocks. That's why they were able to stuff him into his own locker.
Blaine made his way to the Lima Bean and hopped out of his car, smiling at the sound of the door dinging when he stepped inside. It was familiar after having come here every morning for the past year. Whether it was to study in peace, to get coffee, or just get away from his parents for a little while, he always enjoyed the warm atmosphere the little coffee shop had about it. The barista smiled at him when he reached the front of the line and ordered his regular Medium Drip. He ordered a few pieces of biscotti to munch on for breakfast, too.
I'm not that hungry, anyway, he thought to himself despite the low growl his stomach was making.
The barista brought out his coffee and she smiled kindly at him. "Enjoy, Blaine. Have a nice day, sweetie," the older woman, Jackie, said sweetly. She was in her late thirties, with freckles on her cheeks and graying brown hair that fell to her shoulders. Blaine liked her; she was always so nice to him, and he enjoyed seeing her every day when he stopped by. She always sort of had a soft spot for him, too, so she took him under her wing the minute she realized something wasn't quite right. She didn't know what it was, but he obviously had some problems at home, at school, or both. Jackie never pushed for information, though.
"Thanks, Jackie," Blaine forced a smile.
"What happened to your nose, honey?" she asked in concern, leaning on the table he was sitting at. "It looks painful. Have you had it looked at?"
Blaine shook his head. "I'm fine… I just, uh, tripped. I was dancing in my room and I tripped and my nose hit my bed frame, that's all." He forced another smile as he lied to her, hoping she wouldn't see right through him.
She did, of course, but she didn't say anything. "Be more careful, you goofball," she said with a smile, patting his shoulder. "I have to get back to work. I'll see you later, okay?"
"See you," he waved as she returned to her place behind the counter. Blaine sighed. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or depressed by the fact that Jackie believed the lie so easily. He wanted to hide his evidence of being abused, of course, but he sometimes thought it would be nice for someone to know. Someone who truly cared about him. And he knew Jackie cared about him, but he didn't want to worry his friend. Or worse, he didn't want to scare her away. That little thought of paranoia scared him to death. She was his only friend—well, he still wasn't quite sure where he stood with Santana, but he didn't think they were actually friends—and he didn't want to lose her.
"Hi," a soft voce said from beside Blaine, and he looked up with wide eyes. "Can I sit here?" he asked, smiling.
"Yeah," Blaine answered, gesturing to the chair beside him. "Go right ahead. I'm just grabbing some coffee and breakfast before school."
"Me too," the boy answered, thanking Blaine silently as he sat down. "Where are you heading after coffee?"
"McKinley High," Blaine answered with a hint of bitterness in his tone. He hated that school and the majority of the people in it. "You?"
"What a coincidence," the stranger beamed at him, sipping his coffee. "I've just transferred there. Today's my first day." Blaine smiled in surprise, but he was anxious. This boy could potentially just be one more jerk who decided to push him around just because he could.
"T-That's great," he stammered out, not wanting to be impolite. He was hoping for the best. "I'm Blaine." He stuck out his hand for the boy to shake.
"Kurt," he shook Blaine's hand, his blue eyes sparkling. "Nice to meet you, Blaine. It'll be nice to have a friend on my first day."
"I-I don't know if you want to hang around me at school… It might just make things miserable for you."
"Why's that?" Kurt asked, tilting his head to the side curiously. "You seem nice."
"But the football players aren't so nice," Blaine told him. "Yesterday, they shoved me in a locker and I was stuck in there the whole school day. They hate me, and they'll hate you if you're around me. Trust me, you don't want someone like me as a friend…" he said shamefully, staring down at his coffee cup as he spun it around with his finger on the lid. He refused to meet Kurt's eyes. Now Kurt was going to leave him in the dust and never talk to him again, but he should at least know the truth. Blaine didn't want him to be bullied from day one just because he was friends with the most unpopular kid in the entire school.
"What if I told you I don't mind all of that because I only care about being your friend?" Kurt smiled hesitantly. Blaine looked up at him in shock, feeling his heart speed up as those piercing, dazzling, beautiful eyes bore into him.
"W-What?" Blaine asked, as if he hadn't heard correctly.
"I said I want to be your friend. I don't care what anyone says. If they treat you like garbage, than they're no friends of mine, so I don't care what they think of me." Kurt smiled with more confidence now, glad that Blaine was meeting his eyes now. "So, what do you say?"
"I say you're crazy," Blaine deadpanned. Then his lips quirked up into a half smile. "But I also think you're the only person beside the barista here who has ever willingly agreed to be my friend. Thank you."
"Don't mention it," Kurt grinned. "So, it looks like we're both finished?" he asked, noticing that they'd both finished their coffee and biscotti throughout their conversation.
"I guess so," Blaine let out a sigh. "Do you need a ride to school?"
"That'd be great, actually," Kurt nodded. "I walked here, and I don't actually know how to get to the school from here." Blaine laughed, finally smiling genuinely.
"Good thing you picked my table to sit at, I guess," he joked.
"I guess so," Kurt agreed, smiling.
"Oh, look. Anderson's got a new fairy boyfriend!" Karofsky hollered from down the hall, his gang following behind as he stalked towards Kurt and Blaine. The entire football team had two slushies each, one in each hand, and they were prepared to attack.
"G-Get out of here, Kurt," Blaine murmured nervously from Kurt's left side, dropping his hand immediately. "I knew this was a bad idea… I'm sorry. Gosh, I'm so stupid," he muttered to himself. "Get out of here while you have the chance."
"I'm not going anywhere, Blaine," Kurt told him firmly. "Don't worry about me. I'm staying right by your side."
"Kurt, just leave," Blaine pleaded, frozen in place as the gang of Neanderthals approached. Kurt stood right beside him, not budging. "The slushies hurt your eyes. You don't have to do this. Just go, okay?"
Blaine gulped and looked at Kurt like he was insane. But he couldn't find it in him to argue anymore because Karofsky was suddenly right in front of them.
"Let's show the new kid how we welcome people around here," he said with a menacing smile, looking at Kurt. "Save a few for Tinker Bell over here." Then he looked pointedly at Blaine. "The rest are for the Hobbit."
Blaine swallowed thickly and blinked rapidly as he looked up at Karofsky's towering figure. He hadn't expected the full-force slushie attack to come today. He knew the plan had been in the making, but he was never able to figure out when it was going to be. Now he knew, but it was too late to save his clean white shirt.
He shut his eyes tightly just as the first slushie was tossed in his face. He felt the ice dripping down his face and onto his shirt, and he knew there were more slushies, so he kept his eyes closed. The next one was dumped on his head, and he could tell without opening his eyes that they must have gotten in a line, splashing him with colored ice one at a time.
He was wrong, though. The next three were thrown at his face all at once, and he almost fell over. He tasted cherry, grape, and blue-raspberry as they dripped down his face.
The first five slushies had all been thrown within ten seconds, rapidly bringing him to the point of shivering. Blaine trembled as he braced himself for the next wave of ice, but it didn't come. At least, not to him. He wiped his eyes and opened them to see Kurt standing in front of him, taking the next two slushies that were meant for Blaine. Blaine heard Kurt wince in pain and he guessed the boy probably hadn't closed his eyes.
Kurt continued to stand in front of Blaine, protecting him. Then he addressed Karofsky, angrily. "Leave him alone! Can't you see he's shivering? If he gets pneumonia or hypothermia, I'm making sure every cent of the hospital bill is sent to your doorstep." He glowered hatefully at the jock before grasping Blaine's hand and pulling him along behind him, not giving them a chance to throw more slushies at either boy.
"Are you alright?" Kurt asked Blaine gently as he steered him towards the bathroom. Blaine shook his head quickly, clutching Kurt's hand tightly in his own and still trembling. Kurt ushered him into the boy's bathroom and locked the door behind them. "Let's get you cleaned up, alright?"
"I have a change of clothes in my backpack," Blaine told him as he dropped his bag on the floor. "And a rag in there somewhere," he added. Kurt nodded and searched through the backpack for the rag. Once he'd found it, he soaked it with warm water in the sink and began wiping Blaine's face clean. Blaine sat on the rim of the sink as Kurt gently cleaned the coloring and ice out of his eyes and hair. He was especially gentle around Blaine's bruised nose. "You didn't have to do that, you know."
"I know," Kurt shrugged. "But I couldn't let them keep hurting you. It isn't right."
"Maybe not," Blaine answered. "But that's how it is. I'm at the bottom of the High School food chain and I really have no way of working my way up. I haven't ever since I came out last year."
"It's them who have the problem," Kurt said, not even batting an eye at Blaine saying he was gay.
"I try telling myself that every single day," Blaine answered tiredly, looking at Kurt as the boy continued cleaning out his hair. "But every time that I finally start to believe it, they do something like this and it starts all over, and it makes me feel like I'm worthless."
Kurt looked at Blaine sadly, pausing and putting the rag on the edge of the sink. "Blaine, look," he started, holding Blaine's hands. "I've known you for less than an hour and I can already tell that you are so much better than any of them. You're kind, thoughtful, considerate, and so brave. And either they're too dense to see that, or they're just jealous because they wish they could be as amazing as you." Kurt smiled softly at Blaine, looking at his red-rimmed, stinging eyes.
"Is it too soon to call you my best friend?" Blaine asked with a tearful smile, sniffling.
"If you'll be mine, then I'll be yours," Kurt reasoned, smiling brightly. This was going so well already, and he couldn't believe how lucky he was to find Blaine so soon, before he was attacked when arriving at school. He was glad that he was able to protect Blaine. That was the whole point of this, after all.
"Deal," Blaine agreed with an actual smile. After a pause, he said, "I should probably change into those new clothes now. We're already going to be late to our first class."
"Right," Kurt nodded, handing him the outfit from his backpack. Blaine thanked him and took the clothes before hiding away in one of the empty stalls. While he was changing, Kurt cleaned himself up, washing away as much of the slushie as he could. Once he'd changed, he opened the door of the stall and went to sit on one of the sinks again, sighing and running a hand through his hair. Then his eyes widened and he looked at Kurt.
"I-I don't have any of my hair products. I need to put gel in my hair or I'll look like Medusa for the rest of the day," he said, panicked and blushing slightly. He didn't want Kurt to see his hair like that.
Kurt grasped his hands again, standing in front of him. "Blaine, you look fine. Better than fine, actually," he smiled. "C'mon, let's go to class."
Blaine nodded hesitantly, grabbing his back and slinging it over his shoulders. He was surprised when Kurt grabbed his hand, but he found he actually loved the feeling of warmth and comfort that came with the simple touch. He let Kurt pull him through the empty halls, smiling when Kurt started to run. Blaine ran along with him, wondering where they were going. "Kurt? Where are we going?"
"Anywhere but class," Kurt said with determination and excitement written on his face. The look made Blaine anxious, but it also made him curious. He found himself wanting to know more about his mysterious new friend. He'd never met anyone like Kurt before. And now, here Kurt was—with his stunning cyan eyes; his voice that sent shivers down Blaine's spine; his boldness and bravery to stand up for himself and his friends. It all lured Blaine closer and closer. He knew he would follow Kurt anywhere.
And he did. He followed Kurt out of the school, through the parking lot, and to Blaine's car. Then Kurt turned to Blaine with a smile. "Can I have your keys? I want to take you somewhere."
Blaine looked at Kurt skeptically, but he had trouble saying no when those eyes were staring at him, so wide and trusting and perfect. "Y-Yeah," he said as he handed over his car keys to Kurt. He then climbed in the passenger's side as Kurt climbed into the driver's seat. "Where are we going?" he asked anxiously.
"Somewhere beautiful," Kurt replied. "Just trust me?" He turned to Blaine to make sure he wasn't overstepping by doing this. Blaine thought about it for a moment, biting his lip. He winced because he'd accidentally reopened the cut on his lip from the night before. He hid it well, though, pretending that he'd winced because the slushie was still stinging his eyes.
"I trust you," Blaine said; because all he really wanted to do was get away from life for a while—away from school and away from his family. And who better to take him away from all of that than Kurt?
"In that case," Kurt smiled in relief, "let's get out of here."
A/N: This chapter didn't end up at all how I planned, but when do I ever follow through my plans when I'm writing? Honestly. I never do. I always change my mind a gazillion times.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter :) Leave a review and tell me what you think.