Finn sat at the kitchen counter, nursing his jaw with an ice pack. How the hell Jesse St. James had been able to law one on him was a mystery, but there he sat, bloody-nosed, while that curly-haired traitor got off injury-free. Prom sucked.

Luckily for him, Burt and Carole were fast asleep by the time he came home. He knew he'd have to deal with their wrath in the morning, but the delay was welcome. Maybe he could convince them that he just tripped or something (his dancing was infamous).

The back door opened quietly, and Finn turned to see a red-eyed, tiara-adorned Kurt Hummel, who looked like he couldn't decided between smiling and crying.

"What…what happened?" Finn asked dumbly, lowering his ice pack. "Did Quinn give you her tiara? Why are you sad? Did Blaine hurt you? I swear, I'll kill him-"

Kurt tossed the tiara onto the counter harshly, cutting his brother off. "Good to see you haven't learned to control your macho impulses, even after getting kicked out of Prom and leaving your girlfriend dateless." Finn winced. "No, Blaine did not hurt me, and no, this is not Quinn's tiara. It's mine."

The kitchen was deathly silent. Finn blinked a couple of times. "What?" He asked breathlessly. "You…Prom Queen?"

Kurt sighed sharply. "Yes, Finn. Because nothing at McKinley has changed, and it was a mistake to leave Dalton. God, I'm stupid." Kurt slumped against the wall, eyes closed. "I shouldn't have gone to Prom. I shouldn't have forced Blaine to relive that situation. I shouldn't have worn this fucking kilt!"

Kurt slid to the ground, hands tangling in his perfect hair. Finn dashed across the kitchen, crouching down next to his stepbrother.

Finn took Kurt's hands, wiping away one of his tears with his knuckle. "Dude, come on. The kilt is bad-ass. I wasn't lying before; you rock the man-skirt."

The smaller boy let out a watery chuckle, turning away. "You're such an idiot," he murmured, no venom in his voice.

"Did you get to dance with Blaine, at least?" Finn asked, trying to keep that weak smile on his brother's face. Kurt nodded, blushing.

"It was amazing," he whispered, wiping at his cheek. "Blaine's amazing."

Finn grinned, standing up. He extended both hands, effortlessly hoisting Kurt to his feet. "So everyone else can go fuck themselves, okay?" Kurt looked at his stepbrother in wonder, a small smile on his face. "You danced with your boyfriend at Prom and rocked a kilt like nobody's business – who cares what douchey thing all those haters pulled? You're Kurt Hummel, dammit!" Finn shook Kurt's shoulders gently. "You can do whatever the hell you want."

The smaller boy's eyes brightened, and he smiled gratefully. Careful not to make too much noise, he grabbed the icepack from the counter in one hand, his brother in the other, and marched upstairs, settling down in Finn's room. After making Finn properly hang up his tux, he sat his brother down, letting him watch late-night TV while he properly iced the tall boy's nose.

"I hope it's not broken," Kurt mused, brushing some of Finn's hair from his face. Finn sighed.

"I screwed everything up, didn't I?"

Kurt studied his brother's face, then nodded truthfully. "Maybe you should just take a break from girls, Finn."

The taller boy's face scrunched up. "I'm not having a threesome with you and Blaine, dude. That's gross."

Kurt pressed the ice pack against his nose a little too hard, scowling. "That's not what I meant, genius. I meant, you should take a break from dating; just focus on you and who you want to be."

"But that's lonely," Finn murmured, staring at his hands. Kurt's expression softened.

"Life is lonely." Finn looked even sadder now. "But that doesn't mean you're alone. No matter what happens, you'll always have me and Dad and your mom – we're family, now. You don't need a girl to make you happy."

Finn leaned against Kurt's shoulder, eyes on the wall behind the TV. "How did you get so smart?"

Kurt smiled sadly. "By learning from my own mistakes."

"You must have made a lot of mistakes, then." It didn't come out quite as Finn had intended, but Kurt didn't take offense. In fact, he turned to his brother, running a hand through the taller boy's hair.

"I have. And so have you. Because we're human and it's how we grow. Everything will be okay, Finn."

There was a moment of silence, then: "Was that a really long way of you telling me that I can fix this mess I've made?"

Kurt set down the ice pack, rubbing his brother's shoulder. "Little by little, you're growing up, Finn Hudson."

Finn smiled. "So…can I wear your tiara?"

The smaller boy laughed. "Maybe I spoke too soon."