A/N Wow, I am so happy with the response you've all given me for this story. I almost cried reading a couple of the reviews (You know who you are, and THANK YOU!) When I first came up with this idea, I thought I knew where it was going to end up, but then it just took on a mind of its own and went in a completely different direction. I've learned that when a story wants to write itself, I should let it, instead of forcing it to go the way I wanted it to.

Hopefully this next chapter will be a bit happier.

Conversations

Blaine smiled as he slipped into his car, turning the radio up as he pulled out of the Dalton Parking lot. The last couple of days with Kurt just seemed magical. He knew he shouldn't feel that way considering the circumstances, but he couldn't help it.

Wednesday, as he was leaving, Burt had stopped him in the hallway and told him that he had seen the way Blaine had been taking care of Kurt. Had seen the way Kurt had looked at him, how Blaine was his life preserver in treacherous seas. He basically told Blaine that he approved of him, and that as long as he made his son happy, he wouldn't stand in the way.

Of course he also made it perfectly clear that if Blaine's halo slipped and got tarnished, that he had a shotgun and wasn't afraid to use it.

Blaine made the drive to Lima in just under two hours, and he hadn't even been speeding. He'd gotten lucky to beat the worst of the traffic. He pulled into the Hummel-Hudson driveway, whistling Teenage Dream. He checked his hair in the side mirror one last time before making his way up to the front door and ringing the bell.

He knew something was wrong the instant Carole opened the door. "Blaine! Thank god you're here!"

She all but dragged him inside the house. "What's wrong? Where's Kurt?"

"He's locked himself in the downstairs bathroom, we don't know exactly why. One second he was fine, the next he was choking and running for the bathroom. We heard him vomiting." She looked scared, as did Burt when Blaine saw him sitting outside the bathroom, talking through the door softly.

Burt looked up at him in relief. "Kurt? Honey, Blaine is here. Will you let him in to talk to you?"

When there was no reply, Blaine moved closer to the door. "Kurt? Can I come in please?"

Still no reply, but after a moment, the lock clicked. Blaine looked from Burt to Carole before slipping through the door and closing it behind him. He glanced around the room, which was decorated in soft sea colors with sand and coral colored accents.

Kurt sat on the floor between the sink and the commode, knees tucked up under his chin, arms wrapped tightly around them. Blaine slid down across from the bathtub, which was between the door and the commode.

Neither one spoke for a moment. Kurt was staring into space as Blaine studied him.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Kurt didn't respond right away, but after a moment, he shifted, moving closer until his head was on Blaine's knee, arms wrapped around one of his legs. Blaine stroked his fingers lightly through the fairer boy's hair, waiting patiently. It was a while, but soon Kurt began to talk. His voice was raspy and coarse, and Blaine had to strain to here everything.

"Everything was fine, just a regular Friday night dinner. Carole talked about one of her patients. Dad talked about the shop. It was good. It was normal. And then Finn was talking about the substitute they had in World History, and suddenly all I could think about was school, and that hallway, and suddenly I was there again, and He was there, and that taste was back and I..."

Blaine soothed him as he started crying again. "Shh, it's all right. It's normal to have flashbacks. The important thing is to remember that it's over. He can't hurt you anymore. He's locked away in a jail cell. It will take time, you're still healing. Just take one day at a time. And if that seems to be too much, then take it one minute at a time."

Kurt shuddered and sniffled. Blaine reached over and grabbed some tissue from the roll, handing it to Kurt to blow his nose on. They sat in silence for a little while as Kurt's shaking and sobs calmed.

When he slowly sat up and turned to face the shorter boy, Blaine all but held his breath, waiting for the pale boy to make the first move. Very slowly, those glasz eyes moved closer and closer, millimeter by millimeter. When their lips finally touched, he allowed the other boy to lead the kiss, responding but not pushing for more.

When Kurt's tongue tentatively brushed his lips, he opened them slightly, keeping his tongue to himself for the moment, letting the timid boy take his time, allowing him to explore at his own pace. When he felt the tongue shyly slip between his teeth, he wanted to roar in victory, but held himself still.

A hand came up to rest on his cheek, and he couldn't hold back any longer, and slowly took control of the kiss, deepening it a little, stroking the other boy's tongue with his own. After a moment he slowly drew back. He studied the other's boy face, falling into those cerulean depths. He leaned in and kissed him again, allowing his tongue to sweep into Kurt's mouth briefly before pulling back once more.

"Are you ready to face the world now? Or at least your family?" He teased softly.

The pale boy blushed, and smiled softly, then nodded. He got to his feet slowly, then took a deep breath before inching the door open.

Kurt wasn't sure if he could face his Dad after that meltdown, but as he emerged from the bathroom with Blaine on his heals, the man pulled him into a bear hug.

"We'll get through this, Kurt. You'll get through this. You're strong. Maybe not physically, but emotionally. You're one of the bravest men I know. You'll see. You'll be okay."

"I love you, Dad." Kurt croaked out, hugging his Dad just as tight.

Over his shoulder, Burt looked at Blaine. A silent message passed between the two, and the curly haired boy simply nodded.

"Do you want to try to eat again, Kurt?" Blaine asked. "Something smells delicious."

Kurt closed his eyes and took another deep breath, then nodded yes.

"Why don't you two go on up to Kurt's room and I'll bring a tray up for you?" Carole offered.

Blaine smiled politely and thanked her, and followed Kurt upstairs.

"Do you want to watch a movie?" Kurt rasped. "I was watching Beauty and the Beast. I could start it over. Or you can pick something else if you like."

"Beauty and the Beast is fine. I have something of a Disney fixation." The shorter boy smiled and blushed at the confession. Kurt thought the blush was cute.

"Me too." He restarted the video, and the two boys settled on the bed. As the previews ran, Carole brought up a tray with two bowls of soup, some garlic bread, and some sorbet for dessert.

"Just leave the tray outside the door when you're done. I'll collect it later." She smiled sweetly at both boys, then left, closing the door most of the way.

They settled back, watching the movie. Blaine fed some of the soup to Kurt in between bites of his own. By the time Be Our Guest began, they had finished the soup and bread. Blaine began to sing along as he fed Kurt some of the sorbet, which actually made Kurt laugh.

Outside in the hallway, Burt stopped on his way to his own room, his shoulders relaxing as if a weight had been taken off of them.

Kurt had fallen asleep before the villagers stormed the castle. He was curled up against Blaine's side, looking more peaceful than he had since he had taken the stage at regionals. He was gently stroking his fingers through the sleeping boy's hair, watching him breath. He didn't want to move.

A very light knock on the door drew his attention as Burt quietly opened it. Blaine started to sit up, but Burt waved him back.

"Don't wake him up," the elder Hummel said softly. "The doctor said he'd probably sleep a lot, and to let him. I just wanted to see if you needed anything? Do you need me to call your parents and let them know where you are?"

Blaine shook his head no, and spoke just as softly. "They're in Cincinnati for the weekend. I sent them a text that I was visiting a friend. I should be heading back to Dalton soon, though."

"It's too late tonight to drive that far. You're welcome to spend the night."

"Thank you, sir."

"Hey, I told you, sir was my Dad. Call me Burt."

Blaine smiled. "Thank you, Burt."

Kurt's Dad glanced down at the sleeping boy once more, then left, closing the door most of the way once more.

Blaine slid down carefully on the bed to get more comfortable. Kurt snuggled closer in his sleep, sighing softly as his head came to rest on Blaine's shoulder, one hand draping over his stomach. Smiling to himself, Blaine held the angel closer to him, and fell asleep.

Awareness came to him slowly as the sounds of birds singing woke him. He inhaled softly and his nose was filled with the pleasant scent of ripe summer berries and cedar and something masculine that he couldn't describe. When he opened his eyes, they met warm gold, and the dark haired boy smiled sleepily at him.

"Good morning, star-shine. The Earth says hello," Blaine sang softly.

Kurt thought he would feel awkward waking up to a boy in his bed, especially after what had happened. But rather than being afraid or uncomfortable, he felt safe. Even without the sedatives to help him sleep, there had been no nightmares in the middle of the night. He had slept for almost twelve hours, wrapped in Blaine's arms.

Shyly, he smiled at the other boy. He was beginning to believe that his life wasn't over, that maybe there was a chance that one day he would be himself again.

The two boys got up, and Kurt loaned the shorter boy some clothes and let him take a shower first, then after cleaning up and getting changed himself, they headed downstairs to breakfast.

Burt sat at the table eating an egg white omelet with whole wheat toast and orange juice. Carole was at the stove, fixing more omelets. Kurt went to the fridge to get the plastic tub of mixed fruit and some orange juice for him and Blaine. Blaine offered to help with the toast, but was shooed away.

"Where's Finn?" Kurt asked, voice still barely more than a hoarse whisper.

"Sam invited him to go fishing with his little brother and a cousin who is visiting. They left about an hour ago." Carole answered as she set a plate in front of Blaine and another in front of Kurt.

They ate in silence for a little while. Kurt carefully cut his food into very tiny bites and chewed very well before swallowing. After a few minutes, Burt cleared his throat.

"I thought that since Blaine was here, maybe we could talk about the idea of you transferring to Dalton. I know that they caught that boy, and you don't have to worry about him anymore, but I'm not sure I feel comfortable about you going back to that school anytime soon."

Kurt set his fork down slowly, still looking down at his plate. He didn't speak right away, but thought about his response, knowing his Dad needed him to think about it. "I don't know if I can go back there yet. I don't know if I can go near that hallway and not think about..."

His voice broke and he stopped and gathered himself. Blaine took his hand and squeezed it. The fair boy held onto it, lacing their fingers, taking strength from the curly haired boy. He took a deep breath. "I have to try, though. It's the only way I can truly face what happened. Besides, I don't want to leave my friends. They've been there for me through everything. Even when they didn't know the whole story, they knew something was wrong, and they tried to help me."

Burt studied his face for a moment, and nodded. "I can understand that, Kurt, but you don't have to face it right away. What if we consider sending you to Dalton just to finish out this school year, and then come summer, we'll talk about if you still want to go back to McKinley? What do you think, Blaine?"

Blaine studied both Kurt and his Dad for a few minutes. "I think Kurt should go back to McKinley. As much as I would love for him to come to Dalton, to give him that time to heal, I don't think it would be fair to him to make him leave New Directions. After all, He was the only reason they beat us at regionals." He smiled at the glasz eyed boy, who shyly blushed and smiled in return.

But the smile faded and Kurt was thoughtful for a moment. "What if I can't sing ever again, though? What if I stay, and still can't be in Glee club anymore?"

"Do you think they won't still be your friends if you can't sing with them at Nationals? I've seen them, Kurt. They all care about you. That won't change if you can never sing another note. But I believe you will sing again. Maybe not in time for Nationals this year. Maybe not even in time for Sectionals next year, but you will sing again. You have to believe in yourself."

He sat there, looking back and forth between Blaine and his Dad. He knew he would return to William McKinley, but when? Should he go to Dalton, even just until the end of the year, until he had enough time recover emotionally? Or should he try to face his ghosts as quickly as possible? His Dad said he was strong. Blaine said he believed in him.

He took a deep breath, reaching for his courage. He squeezed Blaine's hand, and looked his Dad in the eyes.

"I want to go back to McKinley."