Blaine was glad that Kurt was putting some trust into him and starting to see that he was worth more than Alex insisted. There were a few times that Kurt had even stood up for himself when Alex got angry, which Blaine hoped meant he was beginning to see that Alex was a grade A jerk, but definitely meant that there were occasions when Kurt rang or turned up on his doorstep in the middle of the night, sobbing and seeking comfort from Blaine. Over the next month, Blaine saw Kurt grow stronger emotionally and he couldn't help but feel proud that he'd played some part in that.

The fact that Kurt was still being abused, however, still kept Blaine up at night. He'd tried time and time again to get Kurt to talk to someone, a teacher, the guidance councilor, his dad, but Kurt refused. Blaine knew Kurt was scared, he saw the fear every time Kurt showed up to his in tears or whenever he brought up the idea of speaking to someone, but he wanted Kurt to know that he had nothing to be frightened of.

About a month after the Warbler sleepover, Kurt showed up with bruises on his face and his eyes red from crying and Blaine had had enough.

"He's never hit me in the face before. He always hits where it doesn't hurt as much, arms, legs, you know. He was crying when he realised what he'd done. He put cream on my face and kissed the bruises and told me he loves me. I felt so bad for him," Kurt sobbed.

"No. That's it Kurt. I've let this go on long enough. He can't do this anymore. I can't watch him hurt you. If you don't tell someone about him, then I'm going to," Blaine insisted.

"No, Blaine, please don't. Please, I'm begging you," Kurt whimpered.

"Kurt, do you know how much it breaks my heart to see you in so much pain? I can't let him hurt you anymore. If you don't talk to someone, then as soon as school's out tomorrow, I'm going to yours and I'm going to talk to your dad. He'll probably hate me for keeping it from him so long, but I know he'll be more pissed at Alex for what he's doing to you," Blaine said.

"Please, don't," Kurt begged. "I can't have him worry about me. I don't want him to get ill again."

"Your dad will be fine. What if one day Alex goes further and hurts you more. I think you ending up in hospital and your dad finding out that your boyfriend is the reason you're there will be enough to make him ill again," Blaine spat.

"Please don't tell him. Alex will get angry at me. It'll make everything worse," Kurt argued.

"Or it'll make things better. Why can't you just leave him, Kurt? You can see he's no good for you," asked Blaine.

"He loves me," whispered Kurt.

"Do you love him?"

"What?"

"Whenever I ask your reasons for not leaving him you tell me he loves you, but you never say you love him," Blaine explained.

"I... I don't know," Kurt murmured.

"Well, can you see yourself being with him in the future? Having a house and kids with him?" asked Blaine.

"I... I j-just... N-no I can't," admitted Kurt.

"Well why are you letting yourself suffer through this?"

"I'll wait for him to break up with me. He's sure to after we graduate. He'll find someone else when we move and he'll break up with me. I know he will," said Kurt.

"You shouldn't have to wait for him to break up with you, Kurt. If you're not happy in this relationship then you should call it off. Please talk to someone. What about Miss Pillsbury? She'd help you. I'll come with you to the appointment if you want. I'm begging you, Kurt, don't let yourself get hurt anymore," said Blaine.

"I'll talk to Miss Pillsbury. B-but, I'm scared," Kurt stammered.

"You don't have to be scared. I'm here for you, I'm not going anywhere, and I'll be there in Miss Pillsbury's office with you. Okay?" said Blaine. Kurt nodded, wiping a few stray tears from his cheeks. "Now, come on, let's get you some ice for those bruises and then we can watch a musical of your choice."

"Can we watch The Sound of Music?" asked Kurt.

"We can watch The Sound of Music," confirmed Blaine.

As promised, Kurt and Blaine went to Miss Pillsbury's office the next day in their free period. The woman grinned at them as they entered and offered them a seat in front of her desk. She pumped some hand sanitiser gel into her hands and rubbed them together gently.

"So, how can I help you boys?" she asked, cheerily. She looked between Kurt and Blaine. Blaine gave Kurt a reassuring smile and he nodded, before looking up and meeting Miss Pillsbury's eyes.

"I wanted to talk about my boyfriend," he explained. Blaine gave his forearm a squeeze.

"Go ahead," Miss Pillsbury encouraged.

"He... he's been ... hitting me," Kurt whispered. Blaine felt him stiffen beneath his grip, probably in fear, but he just continued to squeeze his forearm.

"Would you mind elaborating?" asked Miss Pillsbury, kindly.

"I... We've been dating for about five months n-now. At first, it was great and he was really sweet and everything, but after a couple of months he started getting angry at me. I spent too much time with friends and not enough time with him, I wore tight jeans which he classed as provocative, I was close to the guys in glee, and it made him angry. When he got angry, h-he'd hit me. It was light a first, but after a while he got more aggressive. He's always apologetic afterwards and tries to m-make me feel better and tells me how much he loves me," Kurt explained, tears welling in his eyes.

"But he continues to abuse you?" asked Miss Pillsbury. Kurt just nodded. "Has he done anything other that hitting? He hasn't tried to force you into anything, has he?"

"No, nothing like that," Kurt insisted.

"Kurt, what about Warbler night?" Blaine reminded him.

"Oh, he tried to get me to go further with him and started unbuttoning my shirt, but I pushed him off and told him no. He got angry and yelled some stuff at me, but I didn't get hurt that night, just shook up," said Kurt.

"It doesn't matter that you didn't get hurt, Kurt," Blaine said.

"But it's significant," said Kurt.

"Okay, Kurt, I can see that Blaine knows about your relationship, who else knows?" asked Miss Pillsbury.

"No one. I've kind of been distant with my friends since it started and my dad hasn't noticed. It helps that I own concealer and he's gullible," said Kurt.

"Well, I'm here to help Kurt, but as a professional there are things I have to do. If your boyfriend is seriously hurting you then I have to tell a senior member of staff and inform your father-"

"Please don't," Kurt cut her off. "I don't want him worrying about me."

"I'm sorry, Kurt, but I have to. An abusive relationship between two students has to be reported to Principal Figgins who is obligated to inform the parents. And by parents I mean the parents of both students. It's the only way your boyfriend can be dealt with. Now, he's too young to be prosecuted, but he could face suspension and/or therapy," explained Miss Pillsbury. "The police may have to get involved though if the abuse is worse than you're letting on."

"It's not," Kurt whispered. "Everything I've told you is the truth."

"Then, I'll talk to Principal Figgins immediately and he'll call your father as well as your boyfriend's parents. I'll need his name though," Miss Pillsbury said.

"Alex Hughes," Blaine provided.

"Thank you, Blaine," said Miss Pillsbury.

"Can I just... you can call my father, but do you mind if I tell him? I just... I don't want him to hear it from someone else," Kurt requested.

"Of course, Kurt. I'm glad you came to me today," said Miss Pillsbury.

"You can thank Blaine for that," Kurt told her, glancing up at his friend.

"You're very lucky to have a friend like Blaine then," she said with a smile.

"Yeah," Kurt said, smiling at Blaine. "Yeah, I am."