"Were there any witnesses to the incident?"

"A few people were in the locker room when he came in, but they fled as soon as they saw him," Blaine explained, glancing at Dave. "And I didn't really know any of them anyways." He was in Principal Figgins' office. His mother stood behind the chair he was sitting in, and Dave and his father sat on another couch.

"What I don't understand is why you would do something like this," Mr. Karofsky said to his son. "You were doing so well."

Dave was silent, eyes fixed the carpet.

"Blaine, Mrs. Anderson, I'm going to be blunt. If there were no witnesses, I'm not sure how much I could do for you. I could talk to the school board—"

"With all due respect, Mr. Figgins, we don't really need witnesses." He gestured to his broken wrist and his other injuries. The principal stared at them, and Blaine tried to figure out what he was thinking. He wouldn't let Karofsky get away with this again. "And we all know that Dave has done this to other people in the past," he said, not even caring about how that may have sounded or how Karofsky might take it. "You know what happened with Kurt, not to mention the innumerable slushies he keeps throwing on the glee club's faces." He glared at Dave, who lifted his eyes to glare right back.

Figgins leaned back in his chair and thought for a few minutes. The rest of the room sat in an uncomfortable silence.

Finally, he seemed to come to a verdict, sitting up straight once again.

"I will give Dave a one week suspension."

"But—" Dave tried to interrupt.

"If you want anything more, Mrs. Anderson, I'd have to talk to the board."

"Mr Figgins, please..."

While his son continued to beg, Mr. Karofsky nodded in sad acceptance. Figgins refused to give in and gestured for them to leave the room, leaving Blaine and Mary in the office.

"Thank you, Mr. Figgins," Mary said. "I appreciate your help."

"You're welcome."

She left the office with her son, Blaine nodding as to say "thanks" as he walked out the glass door.

Outside of the office, Mary mumbled, "You know, I think one of my cousins just finished law school..."

"No, no, Mom. Please don't," Blaine told her. "It's okay."

"I just...I hate seeing you hurt."

"I understand. But I'm okay, really. I'll be fine."

Mary pulled Blaine into a hug, Blaine awkwardly resting his head on her shoulder. He tried to remember the last time he got a hug from one of his parents; his eighth grade graduation, maybe? However long ago it was, it was too long. He missed his mother's comfort.

The bell rang, signaling the beginning of the school day, and Mary pulled away. "Don't want to make you late for class. Go. Have a good day."

"Thanks, Mom." Blaine smiled at her as he walked away.

Five minutes later, Blaine burst into Mr. Schuester's classroom, earning him stares from both the teacher and the students. "Sorry," he mumbled, and Mr. Schue gave him a look that, if he understood correctly, said you're off the hook this time. He quickly took a seat and grabbed what he needed from his bag, taking a moment to smile at Kurt next to him.

He began to write down what was written on the board when Kurt set a folded piece of paper on his desk.

Hi. How did things go with Figgins?

Blaine scribbled a reply and handed it to Kurt again, trying to act as nonchalant as possible. He heard Kurt scoff. Thirty seconds later, it was back on his desk.

Seriously? Only a week? He deserves at least a month if not expulsion.

Blaine replied, I know, but there were no witnesses. I don't want to push it. I'm lucky he got a week.

Kurt took longer to reply this time, spending a good two minutes absentmindedly tapping his pen against his desk and staring down at the paper. Finally, he wrote back.

I might be able to do something.

Blaine looked over to him, but Kurt was staring straight ahead. Blaine knew that look on his face. He was up to something.

They didn't say anything else to each other for the rest of class. Kurt was forming a plan. Blaine was trying to figure out what that plan was. When class was over, they said goodbye to each other and headed in opposite directions, to their next class.

Kurt at least pretended like he was.

When the bell rang, instead of going to psychology, he headed to another room.

He stepped in the doorway and knocked on its frame. "Coach Sylvester?"

Sue looked up from her paper. "What can I do for you, Porcelain?"

He nervously shifted on his feet. "I...I could really use your help."

Two periods later, Kurt saw Blaine again at lunch. They sat at their usual table with Tina, Mike, and Lauren. Kurt and Blaine sat next to each other; Lauren was on the other side of Kurt; Tina and Mike sat across from the three of them. From what Blaine could hear, Tina and Lauren were discussing the latest Sherlock Holmes movie,and Mike seemed a little too happy about today's lunch of pizza and tater tots. He was practically shoveling it all into his mouth in a matter of seconds (and was eyeing the lunch line to see if he can get another slice...or two...or three). Blaine took this opportunity to talk to Kurt.

"You're up to something," Blaine said, keeping his voice low. "What is it?"

"If everything goes as planned, you'll find out soon enough," Kurt replied, and refused to say another word on the subject for the rest of the meal. But Blaine was dying to know what was happening. He hated being out of the loop.

So he gently nudged Kurt. "Come ooon," he pleaded. "Tell me."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Have some patience, Blaine. I'm not even sure if it'll work yet. Just...wait." And with that, they both shut up for the rest of the period.

"Listen to me, Figgins. You're going to expel that kid. Do you have any idea how hard it is to be bullied and taunted for something that's out of your control?"

"Sue—"

"Is a one week suspension really the best you could do? Because it obviously worked so well on the kid last year when he did the same thing. And do I really have to mention those pictures I found—"

"Sue!"

"Believe it or not, I already have the post saved as a draft on the Cheerios' website. All it takes is one click, Figgins."

"Put your phone away, Sue!"

"My finger's right over the 'publish' button..."

Figgins spoke with Blaine after glee club that day. When he asked to speak to the boy, Blaine signaled to Kurt that he would meet up with him in a minute before turning back to Figgins.

"David Karofsky has been expelled," he said to Blaine.

"What?"

"I spoke with the...school board. They decided it would be best if he no longer attended McKinley."

"Um, t-thank you, sir." Figgins nodded and walked away. Blaine took a second to process the information as he walked down the hallway. He nearly jumped when he turned the corner to find Kurt leaning against the wall. With a smirk on his face, Kurt winked and stood up straight.

"What did you...How did you even..."

"I have connections. Well, one. One with enough blackmail-worthy information to last for a long time."

"Sue."

"Are you mad at me?"

Blaine decided that he wasn't. Maybe he should be, but he couldn't be, not even if he wanted to. "No," he said. "I should probably be be disappointed in you for using blackmail to get him expelled, but at least he won't be hurting anyone anymore, you know?"

"Yeah." They still had Azimio and the rest of the football team, but he wanted to hope that they wouldn't dare mess with anyone after they find out what happened to Karofsky. "It's been a really long day. Coffee?" he asked, already knowing what the answer was. He held out his hand and Blaine took it in his, and they walked out of the school together.

The next day was very uneventful compared to the week before. Blaine got a few glares from the football team, but that was it. They didn't dare shout an insult at him. He could definitely get used to it.

On his way to sixth period, he spotted a poster in the hallway and stopped in his tracks. It was for Homecoming. Tomorrow. Shit. He had completely forgotten about that between everything with Karofsky. He made a mental note to stop by the video rental store after school.

"Are we still on for tomorrow night?" Blaine asked Kurt at glee club.

"What?"

"Tomorrow. Movie night?"

"Oh! Yeah, right. Of course! I'm sorry. After everything that happened, I kind of figured you didn't..."

"I'm not letting Karofsky get in the way of our date, Kurt."

"Good. So my house? Around five?"

"I'll be there." They smiled at each other, and Kurt saw Santana smirking in the corner of his eye. "Movie night, huh? Is that what the kids call it these days?"

"Santana!"

"Oh, come on. Don't pretend you weren't thinking about it."

"Santana, please stop talking," Kurt flushed, trying his best to ignore her and focus on what Mr. Schue was saying.

On Friday night, Kurt was pouring microwave popcorn into a bowl when the doorbell rang. "It's open," he shouted and hoped that it was Blaine and not some serial killer he just invited into his home.

Luckily, it was the former. Blaine walked into the kitchen holding a stack of DVDs in one hand and a bouquet of flowers in the other.

"You got me flowers?" Kurt's face broke out into a grin.

"No, these are actually for my other boyfriend," Blaine joked, and Kurt mock-hit him in the arm. They both laughed and Kurt pulled Blaine in for a kiss. Blaine set the DVDs on the kitchen counter while Kurt found a vase for the flowers. "They're beautiful. Thank you." They kissed again, longer this time, and then set the DVDs and popcorn on the coffee table. Finn was at homecoming with Rachel and his parents had decided to go on their own date night, so they had the house to themselves.

"Are you sure we'll have enough time to watch all of these?" Kurt asked, looking through all of the DVDs Blaine had brought.

"Well, if we don't, I guess we'll just have to have another movie night," Blaine replied with a grin.

So they popped in the first DVD on the pile, Rent.

Kurt smiled, remembering what was technically one of their first dates; when Blaine got them tickets for the musical. He realized it had been a year since he first met Blaine at Dalton. A year? Already? It may have flown by fast, but he still cherished everysecond of it.

Blaine put an arm on the back of the couch and Kurt snuggled into his chest, balancing the popcorn bowl on Blaine's lap. They stayed that way throughout the entire musical. By the time it was over, the bowl of popcorn was empty, so Kurt went to refill it while Blaine put the next movie into the DVD player.

When Kurt walked back into the room to see the Disney logo on the screen, he couldn't help but smile. Of course Blaine would bring a Disney movie. It was The Lion King, and by the time it was over, they had both shed a tear or two. They sniffled simultaneously and looked at each other before bursting out in laughter. "Look at us," Kurt said. "Crying over a movie about lions. We look ridiculous."

"Everyone cries during Lion King, though," Blaine explained. "If you don't, you're not a human being."

Kurt just shook his head in response and giggled as he inserted Father of the Bride into the DVD player. He had to admit, this movie was one of his biggest guilty pleasures. However, by the end of it, he was asleep. His head was in Blaine's lap, and Blaine ran his hands through his hair, knowing that Kurt would probably hate him for it but continuing anyways.

He had stopped watching the movie long ago; his eyes were fixed on Kurt now, concentrating on every inch of his face from the way his eyelashes rested on his cheek to his mouth that was open just a sliver. God, he was beautiful. Blaine had no words.

Before he knew it, the credits were rolling, and Blaine was stuck. He didn't want to move and wake up Kurt. He figured he would give him a few more minutes, and then he would wake him. Just five minutes...

It was around ten thirty when Burt and Carole returned from their date. It had been wonderful; they went to dinner at Carole's favorite Italian restaurant, and then Burt drove for an hour to surprise Carole by taking her to Ohio's one and only drive-in theater. And Carole loved it.

They walked inside their house, turning on the lights as they entered each room. "Uh..." Burt paused when he entered the living room to find his son lying in Blaine's lap, both of them asleep. Carole appeared behind him a second later. She knew her husband was uncomfortable, but she couldn't help but internally squeal when she saw the two boys. "Let them be," she said quietly. "They're not being...inappropriate or anything." Burt cringed at the thought...on his couch...he pushed the thought out of his mind. He had to admit; Blaine treated his son well. He couldn't deny that. But he still wasn't sure he was ready for Kurt to be doing...you know, that.

"I'll call his mom to let him know he's staying over," Carole said. "I don't have her number. Do you think he'd mind if I used his phone?" There was really no other choice, so she used Blaine's cell phone to call Mary. Carole assured her that Blaine was safe and sound, and Mary seemed to trust her about it. Since it was late, they hung up after a minute. Burt and Carole took one last look at the two before going to bed.

Blaine woke up to the smell of coffee and bacon. He opened his eyes and was confused for a moment before remembering the night before. So much for a five minute nap. Beginning to worry that his mom was panicking, he reached for his phone when Carole appeared from upstairs. "I called you mom last night to let her know you were staying over," she said. "I hope you don't mind that I used your phone."

"Oh, no, it's fine. Thank you." At the sound of Blaine's voice, Kurt's eyes fluttered open. He sat up and stretched. "You should have woken me up."

"I know how much you value beauty sleep."

"I don't want you to get in trouble with your mom."

"She won't mind. Carole called her."

Kurt, still half-asleep, just made a noise in response. "I'm starving." He got up and walked to the kitchen, and Blaine followed him.

He ended up awkwardly shifting from side to side in the kitchen. "I, uh, I should get going. I don't want to be—"

"Oh, no, honey, please. Stay for breakfast. It's no trouble at all," Carole insisted, and Blaine didn't have the heart to say no. He took a seat next to Kurt at the table.

"I missed the ending of Father of the Bride," he said. "The ending is my favorite part, too."

Blaine replied, "I guess we'll just have to watch it again next time. And I have yet to introduce you to the wonderful world of LOST."

Kurt smiled and went to set the table. Blaine had nothing to do but watch everything that was going on. Carole swatted Finn's hands away from the bacon; "Breakfast hasn't started yet," she scolded. Kurt straightened Burt's hat as he set the table. "Morning, Blaine," Burt said with a smile as he sat down. "Good morning, Mr. Hummel," Blaine replied. By then, breakfast was ready, and Kurt returned to his seat as Carole began to lay the meal out on the table: scrambled eggs, pancakes, bacon, waffles...and just about every other breakfast food imaginable. Seeing the look on his face, Kurt leaned over and said, "Kind of a family tradition. Every Saturday, we eat a huge breakfast feast together. It's pretty much the only day of the week when we're all together in the morning, so we like to take advantage of it."

Blaine thought that was sweet. Each time his family tried to have a meal together, it almost always ended up in arguments and someone standing up and leaving the table. It was nice to be around a real family for a change, one that supported each other through thick and thin.

It was the best meal Blaine had had in a long time. Not only was the food delicious, but the Hummels were great. Like always when he stayed for dinner, they didn't exclude him from their conversation. They asked him about school and glee club. Burt talked to him about the auto shop and football. Finn told them about homecoming. Kurt gossiped to him. It was wonderful.

Shortly after the meal ended, Blaine's mom called and asked him to return home. He thanked Burt and Carole and kissed Kurt goodbye before heading out the door.

Before Monday morning's glee club meeting began, Kurt stood in front of the piano, trying to get the group to quiet down.

"I prepared a number for today. I'd like to dedicate it to Blaine. I heard this song on the radio the other day and it reminded me of you...reminded me of us. So...this one's for you."

He nodded to the band and the music began to play. Blaine smiled as Kurt looked at him and began to sing.

I think that possibly, maybe I've fallen for you

Yes, there's a chance that I've fallen quite hard over you

I've seen the paths that your eyes wander down

I wanna come, too..

I think that possibly, maybe I've fallen for you.

No one understands me quite like you do

through all of the shadowy corners of me...

I never knew just what it was about this old coffee shop I love so much

All of the world I never knew...

Kurt slowly walked over to Blaine, who was sitting in the front row of chairs. He took hold of his hands as he continued to sing.

I think that possibly, maybe I've fallen for you

Yes, there's a chance that I've fallen quite hard over you

I've seen the waters that make your eyes shine

Now I'm shining, too

Because, oh, because I've fallen quite hard over you.

If I didn't know you, I'd rather not know

If I couldn't have you, I'd rather be alone

I never knew just what it was about this old coffee shop I love so much

All of the world I never knew...

The song came to a close, and Kurt and Blaine were left smiling at each other, Blaine's hands still in Kurt's. The rest of the glee club applauded and Kurt took his seat next to Blaine, who just stared at him.

"What is it?" Kurt asked anxiously. "Did—Did you not like it?"

"Oh, no, God, no. I loved it. It's...you're..." Blaine stumbled to find the right words. "You're amazing." He brought their lips together, bringing a hand to Kurt's face.

"I love you so much," Kurt said when he pulled away, resting a hand on Blaine's wrist. Blaine couldn't help but smile as he replied, "I love you."

Neither of them were perfect. Like every other couple, they had their troubles. But it was moments like this that made it worth it; when, even though there were 12 other people in the room, it was just Blaine and Kurt, and they were all that mattered to each other.

Blaine had come to McKinley for a fresh start. A new beginning. He had been searching for acceptance, courage, and, most importantly, love.

And he had Kurt to thank for giving him all of that and more.