Burt Hummel pours coffee, settles down at the kitchen table, opens his newspaper, and waits. Sure enough, he soon hears footsteps and he looks up, offering as genuine a smile as he can, as he pushes a second cup across the table. "Here."

"Thanks."

"Sleep well?"

"Okay, I guess." Angie shrugs, tucking her hair behind her ears before sipping at her coffee. "I woke up at four and couldn't get back to sleep. Too much to think about."

"Yeah, well...you ready to talk?"

"I'm not going back."

"Good, if you mean it, that is."

"I do," Angie says firmly, and Burt notices that same quiet determination that he sees in Blaine when he's fixed on something.

"So why'd you leave?"

"I told you, he did something terrible."

"But you won't tell me what," Burt points out. "And since you seem to be living here..."

"I'm not living here!" Angie cries. "I just didn't know where else to go. I'll leave, if that's what you want."

"That's not what I want," Burt says exasperatedly. "What I want is for you to tell me what he's done, what was that final straw? Cause me and Blaine, and God knows Kurt too, we've been telling you to leave that jerk since forever, but you haven't listened, then suddenly you're on my doorstep. You say he didn't hit you, but..."

"He didn't," Angie says, with a shake of her head. "He's just...he's done something awful."

"Cheated on you?"

"No."

"Stolen from you?"

"Kind of."

"Kind of? What does that mean?" Burt asks in confusion.

"It means he..." Angie stops suddenly, and looks Burt right in the eye. "What the hell have I done?"

"Huh?"

"To my son," she whispers, and Burt sees the moment the veil is finally, completely lifted. "Oh my god, Burt, what did I ever put him through? And why? For what? I've ruined everything with him for four years of utter misery. I put him through hell and I turned a blind eye to it all. And Carl..." she takes a huge gasp of air, before her tears hit and she breaks down completely. "Oh my god, Carl, Carl, I ruined his life, Burt. He died! He died thinking I didn't love him, and he died knowing I was cheating on him, oh...oh...Blaine, Carl...what am I? What kind of evil, hateful person am I?"

"Okay, easy there, come on," Burt says gruffly, pulling her to her feet and into his arms. "Come on, let it all out. Have a good cry and then we'll talk."

"I've lost it all!" Angie wails, as Burt holds her tight in his arms.

"No you haven't. You've still got all of us, because we all knew this day would come. Now come on, you've got a home here with me for as long as you need one," he says, shoving all thoughts of an enraged Kurt to the back of his mind. He knows Blaine will be upset too, but he'll be damned if he's going to throw her out now.

It had been a bit of a shock when the doorbell sounded last night, not least because no one ever really came to his house after dark. To see Angie standing there, her car parked haphazardly across the driveway, had been an even bigger surprise. "I've left him," was all she had said, before Burt had nodded, pulled the door open, and let her in.

She had packed her bags early that morning and left home before anyone was awake, she told Burt over a large glass of whiskey. She had driven aimlessly for a while around Baltimore, and had even toyed with the idea of heading to New York, but she figured that it wouldn't be fair to bring all this onto Blaine, and before she had really thought it through, she was heading toward Ohio, and the one person other than Blaine she knew she could trust.

She hadn't really spoken much last night, just said over and over that she couldn't and wouldn't go back, while Burt carried her bags inside and got her settled in the guest room, and then she had promptly taken a shower and gone to bed at around midnight, while Burt stayed sitting in the den until the early hours, wondering what the hell he had gotten himself into.

"I have to tell Blaine," Angie sniffs, rubbing at her eyes. "I need to tell him first, then I can talk to you."

"Okay, I respect that," Burt shrugs, then sighs as the house phone starts to ring. "Look, let me get that, and then I'll make us some breakfast. I'm good at French toast, thanks to Kurt."

When he returns, he is white, and looks like he is about to collapse any second. He leans heavily on the counter, breathing hard, and Angie rushes to his side. "Burt? What happened?"

"That's what he did?" Burt asks through gritted teeth. "That's what made you leave him? And you didn't think to tell me?"

"What? What are you...? Who called?"

"He beat my son!" Burt roars, storming away from her. "He beat my son and now he's lying in a hospital bed!"

"What?" It's Angie's turn to feel all her strength ebbing away, as she sits heavily in a chair. "Spencer? He beat Kurt?"

"Blaine!" Burt yells. "Spencer and Simon beat Blaine, and now he's in the hospital! You didn't think to tell me that's why you left? You didn't think I'd want to know?"

"What? You think I know?! Are you insane? How would I...why...why would I come here if I knew he'd done that? What...Blaine? Is he okay?"

"Clearly he's not okay, because he's in the hospital!" Burt screams. "He's in the hospital because you married that fucking asshole, and now I'm gonna kill him. I'm gonna hunt him down for this, and I'm gonna kill him."

"Burt," Angie cries, as her panicked tears begin. "Burt, really, I didn't know. My son...he's my son too," she says firmly. "And I need to see him."

"Okay," Burt grumbles, his immediate temper calming somewhat. "Okay, you didn't know, I can see that. Sorry. Look, I'm going to New York. Now. I need to see my boys."

"Can I come?"

"If you really must," Burt snaps, before stamping down the hallway. "Get dressed and pack a bag. I leave in ten."

It is a completely silent ride to the airport. Angie wants to know more, such as why and how Spencer found Blaine, and how badly injured he is, but she doesn't dare speak. The hard set of Burt's jaw as he speeds down the highway tells her all she needs to know, and she can see exactly where Kurt gets his temper from.

Burt feels like he's going to throw up at any second. He doesn't have a clue when the next flight is, he only knows that he needs to be on it, and he will be at any cost, even if that means leaving Angie to wait for the next one. He knows he is being unreasonably cold, and he does accept that whatever the reason for Angie leaving, she really didn't know Spencer had gone after Blaine. Still, the fact remains that if she hadn't been so stupid, back when Blaine was just fifteen, if she hadn't had her head turned by this evil monster, none of this would have happened.

Kurt had found him, he said. He had forgotten his laptop, so he came rushing home unexpectedly in the middle of the day, and Burt thanks god that he did. Blaine was on the floor, and they were laying into him. Kurt hadn't divulged what else had happened, but when Burt had mentioned the police, there had been a stiff and uncomfortable silence, which led him to believe that maybe Kurt had retaliated in some way.

Well, good.

A broken collarbone and severe bruising was apparently what Blaine was now dealing with, but he knows Kurt, and he knows he's trying to make it sound less serious than it actually is, so that Burt won't worry, but he is. He's worried, he's scared, and he needs to hold both of his sons in his arms, and then he needs to seek revenge.

Burt parks quickly, and they rush into the terminal, where he doesn't even hesitate in handing over his credit card to pay nearly fifteen hundred dollars for two last minute flights to JFK. "Burt," Angie whispers. "That's...let me pay, please."

"Just be quiet," he barks, and snatches their boarding passes. "Let's go."

The wait for the flight is the worst part. They only have carry-on luggage, meaning they're checked in and ready to fly right away, and then trapped waiting, pacing aimlessly up and down, while Burt tries to call Kurt again but gets no reply.

"He might be sleeping," Angie offers.

"I highly doubt that. He's probably tending to his boyfriend like he's been doing since yesterday."

"Did he say uh...what injuries, or..."

"Broken collarbone. Bruising."

"Oh. Well. That's not..."

Burt stops dead and stares accusingly. "That's not what? That's not too bad? Is that what you were going to say? Huh?"

"No, I was just meaning...it could have been worse," Angie says weakly, then shuts up again. Now is not the time to try and look on the bright side. Clearly for Burt, that time might be quite a way off.

"Yeah, coulda been worse," Burt says loudly, throwing his hands up in despair. "They coulda killed him, after all. How lucky Kurt came home and intervened. Dunno what they're all complaining about really. It's nothing, is it? Y'know, when you let someone into your apartment, expecting it to be a delivery guy, and then you're savagely beaten. Yeah. Cause that won't scar you for life at all, especially not when you've spent three years trying to get over the bastard that ruined your whole life. Nah, it won't shatter all your confidence at all. No way."

"Sorry," Angie whispers, and Burt feels a small pang of regret when he sees her openly crying. "I just...find myself grateful that he's perhaps not as bad as I feared, that's all."

Burt gives a grunt of acknowledgment, and then sits in silence until their flight is finally called. He's grateful they had to sit separately, otherwise he thinks one of them at least wouldn't make it off the flight, but the second it touches down, they are hurrying out through the terminal to find a cab.

Mercifully, for late on a Saturday morning, the traffic isn't too heavy, and they make good time getting into the city, with Burt slowly typing a text to Kurt informing him that they are on their way.

"Did you want me to type that?" Angie asks, and Burt gives her a withering glare.

"No."

"Okay."

"I'm done now."

"I hope they didn't hurt his pretty face," Angie murmurs, then stiffens when she sees Burt turning red with anger.

"Really? Really? Do you think that's foremost in anyone's mind right now? Jesus, even Kurt isn't as shallow as you."

"Shallow?" Angie yells, too loudly for the confines of their cab. "Shallow? No, Burt, fucking terrified, that's what I am. Terrified, and feeling out of place, and like I don't belong, like I have no right to be here or to even try and comfort my son, when super Burt, the greatest dad in the whole wide world, is coming to the rescue. We'll get there, and I will be totally ignored. Nothing about my son's welfare will be discussed with me, and I will have no say in what happens from here on in, because as everyone loves to keep reminding me, I fucked up, meaning he's your son now, and he belongs to you and Kurt. You three are the Hummel's, as if I could ever forget, and I'm just some poor relation who gets invited to spend holidays, because you all take pity on me. Don't worry Burt, I won't forget my role, I've had quite a lot of practice at playing my part."

"I'm sorry," Burt says awkwardly, once they're on the sidewalk outside the hospital. "Really. You're right, he's your son, I just... I have quite a protective nature, and when I met Blaine, he was...he was broken," he tells her, and Angie looks down at the sidewalk and nods. "He was this broken little boy, and I wasn't even looking to take anyone in, find a son, or whatever, I just thought the kid looked like he could use a break, that's all. Well, I'd like to think I went some way toward fixing him a little bit at least."

"You did, you have," Angie says earnestly, placing a hand on his arm.

"Well you see, it makes no difference to me that I didn't hold him when he was seconds old, or that I didn't watch him take his first steps, cause I held him when he was at his lowest, and I came to love him just as I love Kurt. I don't say all that to take away that he's yours, just to try and say that...well, I'm upset. I'm upset that I wasn't there for him this time, and that now he's all broken again, and I don't know if I'll be able to fix him."

"We all can," Angie whispers, her eyes filled with tears. "And don't apologize for being protective, there's really no need. You wanna know something?"

"Sure."

"You've held me at my lowest too, and Kurt, and you've helped to fix all of us. You're a very special man, Burt Hummel, and it's okay to admit to being scared. It's not much, but I really don't know where I'd be without you, and I can't thank you enough. I'm sorry that I keep saying dumb things, it's just...I don't know what else to say, because I'm scared too."

"Hmm. Well, I guess we better go inside," he says gruffly, but he does give her a hug, and keeps his arm around her shoulders as they walk. "Go find our son."

"That's weird, isn't it? Our son, when..."

"Very, now let's not say any more about it."

Burt marches into the hospital and up to the seventh floor, where he booms his arrival at a startled nurse, who scurries down the corridor leading the way to Blaine's room. "I'll just see if he's..." she says quietly, and gives a knock to the door, before poking her head inside. "Your dad is here," she tells Blaine, who is propped up with the aid of a lot of pillows, as Kurt tries to convince him to eat. "Do you want me to show him in?"

"I didn't know he was coming," a shocked Blaine whispers, and though he really doesn't know why, he suddenly feels afraid, as if Burt might be angry at him in some way. "You didn't say," he tells Kurt, who sets the pudding down on his table.

"Well, I called him this morning. He has to know, Blaine."

"I know, but I..."

"Okay. Take a few minutes," Kurt says, rising and kissing his forehead. "I'll go talk to him."

The sight of Burt standing there waiting is enough to send Kurt stumbling toward him, into his arms, where he finally feels it's okay to let himself go limp and for the tears to come. "Dad," is all he whispers, while Burt just holds him tightly as only Burt can do.

"It's okay, sunshine, it's okay."

"It's not," Kurt sobs. "It's not. He's sixteen again, dad. He's scared of every noise, every movement, I'm frightened I'm gonna say or do the wrong thing and upset him, and he's all bashed up and..." He stops dead, suddenly noticing Angie standing quietly by. "What the hell is she doing here?" he snaps, pushing out of his dad's embrace. "I've been calling you!"

"Kurt, I..." Angie starts, but she is quite unprepared for the full force of Kurt's anger.

"Blaine's been out of his damn mind! Spencer showed up looking for you, you realize that? That's why all of this shit happened," he yells in her face, and Burt quickly positions himself between them both.

"Easy son, Angie didn't know. She came to me last night. We had no idea that..."

"But she didn't answer my calls! Blaine asked me to find you, he needed to know you were okay, and now I find out you've been hiding at dad's while my boyfriend took the wrap for you going missing?"

"Kurt really, I didn't know that all this would happen, I had to leave, I had to..."

"Oh save it for someone who cares," Kurt snaps. "I've had it with you. This is all your fault, Angie, every last bit of it."

"Come on, Kurt," Burt tries, but he's marching swiftly back to Blaine's room, and closes the door behind himself without a word.

"Are you mad at me?" a timid Blaine asks, as Kurt leans against the door and draws in a sharp breath.

"What? No. Never. Uh...so, I found your mom."

"You did?"

"Yeah," Kurt mumbles, silently cursing Blaine for looking so elated. "She's outside."

"My mom?"

"Yeah."

"She came for me?"

Again, Blaine looks so delighted to hear of Angie's presence that Kurt can feel the familiar stab of resentment in his gut as he moves away from the door to sit by him. "Came or was brought. It appears she left Spencer and went right to dad, so when I called him, it followed that she would come with him."

"Oh."

"I know."

The unspoken hangs in the air between them, but Kurt decides to broach it first. "I feel pissed off, you know?"

"You've been crying," Blaine notes, reaching out to caress his cheek.

"Yeah but that...well that's more because of you."

"Sorry."

"No, no, don't ever be sorry," Kurt says quickly. "I just...I don't know. I should be glad she got out, right? Only I'm not, because I'm angry that they came for you. How did they find you? How did they know where we lived? Why did she escape and you have to go through all this?"

"Kurt it's..." Blaine breaks off, as he struggles to sit up, the pain in his groin tearing through him. "It's better that it was me, really."

"It's not! How can you say that? How is it better?"

"Because who would want to get a call saying their mom had been killed, huh? That's what it would have been. They wouldn't have stopped. They only stopped with me because you nearly killed them first, you ninja warrior, you."

"Shut up," Kurt says, but he bows his head onto Blaine's tummy, and lets him play with his hair. "I never knew I had that kind of strength."

"Fuelled by anger and adrenaline," Blaine murmurs, moving his hand to rub at the back of his neck. "Listen tiger, I love you so much, but please don't be angry at my mom for this, or dad for that matter. Just be glad that she did leave, and that she felt comfortable enough to go to him, because if she had come to us, it could have been a whole different story."

"Don't be right," Kurt mutters, climbing onto the bed to rest next to him. "I can't stand it."

"I know, but I'm always right," Blaine grins. "I'm so glad we have each other," he whispers, turning serious. "Forever."

"Me too. And you are right, there's no point in blaming anyone, we just need to work on getting you better. Not just on the outside, but in here too," he says, resting a hand over Blaine's heart. "How are you feeling now?"

"A little better, still sore though. My junk is killing me," he admits shyly. "Like it's super painful down there."

"Does it hurt when you pee?"

"Kuuuurt."

"Don't."

"A bit," he admits. "But mostly it just hurts all the time. When I go to the bathroom, it's not really much more painful, just...well, sore, and it's kinda hard to make it come out, you know?"

"We can ask the doctor when he comes back."

"I get embarrassed."

"I don't care. We're asking."

"Do you think they'll let me go home?" Blaine asks hopefully. "We have a date on Saturday, don't forget."

"Oh honey, it's Saturday today," Kurt says sadly. "But don't worry, we'll take a rain check."

"But you said nothing was stopping us."

"I know, but...well, it doesn't matter for now." Kurt manages to smile, but inside he's falling apart. He was supposed to be proposing to Blaine today, not sitting in a hospital panicking about whether he can go to the bathroom properly. "I'm...you know what? I'm gonna go apologize to your mom," he says, hoping Blaine can't see his tears. "I'll send dad in, if that's okay?"

"Sure."

There is a moment, when Burt enters the room, when neither one knows what to say. It's been a long time since they've been through hard times together, and mostly nowadays their reunions are happy, fun filled occasions, with lots of laughs.

Not this time, though.

This time Burt gives a short, crisp nod, which is really just a cover up for not crying, and reads over Blaine's chart on the end of the bed, even though he has no clue what any of it means. When he finally feels like he can trust his voice, he looks up again to see Blaine staring back at him with wide eyes.

"Broken collar bone, huh?"

"Yes."

"I had that. Fell off my bike when I was twelve. Hurt like hell. You have to be careful with it."

"I will."

"Uh-huh. And how're you feeling otherwise?"

"Okay," Blaine lies, though he knows Burt will see right through the pretense. "Yeah. I mean my eye is a little sore but...okay."

"It looks hideous," Burt tells him bluntly. "You know, your mom was worried they'd go for your face."

"Well, they did."

"And elsewhere, I understand."

"Why do you always know everything?" Blaine whines, turning beet red.

"I'm your dad, it's my job," Burt declares, then finally settles himself on the bed next to him and gives a kiss into his hair. "Kurt's worried about ya."

"Kurt treats me like I'm five," Blaine says, but it's not accusatory, more a statement of fact. "It's all gone weird and I don't like it."

"He's just trying to look out for you, Blaine, we all are."

"I know that but..." he stops, thinking back. Of all the things he can remember, two moments stand out the most. Simon and Spencer's faces, as they stood over him, and the massive crack from Kurt's punch. "He would have killed them if it wasn't for Brian."

"Ah, so he did throw a punch," Burt wonders aloud. "And that's why you don't want the cops involved."

"Throw a punch? No, if he'd done that I'd be less hesitant to speak to the police. No, he smashed Spencer's face across a wall, dad. You think this is bad?" he asks, gesturing to himself. "They will have needed urgent and significant hospital treatment. Simon was practically bleeding from every orifice, and I wouldn't be surprised if we find Spencer's teeth in the living room rug."

"He really went for it?"

"Big time."

"That's my boy," Burt says proudly. "My Kurt."

"Yeah, and I just curled up on the floor and hoped I would die quickly."

"Oh hey now, don't you start with that."

"I'm not strong," Blaine whispers sadly. "I just caved when they came in. It was so quick and all this emotion and this pain, and...and all I could do was beg them to stop." He breaks off, wiping at a few stray tears. "That's what's made it all weird. Kurt was this hero, like you see in the movies, you know? And I just collapsed under the pressure. Weak, pathetic, like I always was around them. Like I had stopped being, and like I thought I'd never be again, but I was," he says, crying harder. "I went back to exactly how I used to be. I'm twenty! I'm supposed to be a man. I live with my boyfriend who's in his thirties and...and...I act like I'm a kid."

"Enough," Burt says firmly. "Blaine, Kurt and I have said before, you're the strongest person we know. All you've put up with, the way you've bounced back time and time again. You have such a big heart, you're such a forgiving person. That isn't weak. It takes strength to forgive all you went through with your mom. As for those idiots, well, I daresay Kurt would have cowered too, if he'd been caught unawares like you were. So you begged, so what? You've got a life worth begging for, my boy. You're anything but weak. You love Kurt with every bit of you, and god knows you've given him more comfort and security than he's ever felt since he was a kid. No weak man could take on Kurt Hummel," he jokes. "But seriously. You've been strong for him, helped him through his darkest times, and waited patiently while he figured himself out. Now let him be strong for you. Lean on him, it's what partners do; uphold one another, support each other, and take that comfort for themselves when they need it. You two will get through all this together, as long as you don't let your pride get in the way."

"Sometimes I do want to be a little kid again though," Blaine admits softly. "Like I'm tired of being an adult, and I just want to hide under the covers, and let everyone else handle the responsibility."

"Oh Blaine, I'm nearly sixty two and I still feel like that," Burt tells him, settling an arm gently around his shoulders.

"Like with the cops. Kurt wants to get them involved, but I say no. I can't. I know that wasn't how I was raised, but I can't run the risk of Kurt getting charged with something, I just can't."

"Well kid, I agree with ya," Burt sighs, feeling helpless and unable to comfort his confused young son. He can see the hell he is trapped in, but he can't figure it all out for him, and he hates that. "I think we all have to agree, that even though it sucks, and it really, really does, we don't report any of this to the police. They didn't break and enter, you let them in, and the only bit of it all that has any other witnesses, is Brian coming in just as Kurt launched his attack. It's their word against yours, and given that their injuries were worse, they can try and spin it that you and Kurt launched an unprovoked attack or whatever. I would hate for all of us, especially you two, to go through the pain of a trial, only for Kurt to be convicted and not them. So no police."

"But my mom..."

"Don't worry about your mom. She's gonna live with me for a while."

"Ew."

"Not like that. Just until she can get back on her feet. I'd like her where I can keep an eye on her, and you'll only worry if she decides to live here. You've got enough going on."

"So she left him then."

"She did. And I think she's pretty determined she won't be going back. Especially not now."

"Why did she leave?"

"I don't know," Burt admits. "She says she wants to tell you that before she tells anyone else."

"Oh. Can I see her then?"

"Sure, I'll send her in. Maybe I'll force Kurt to come get coffee with me."

"Good idea." Blaine reaches out with his good arm, catching hold of Burt's hand. "I love you."

"Yeah." Burt nods, not trusting his voice. He wants to scoop Blaine up and take him away from all this, Kurt too. Far away, until none of them ever have to worry again. "I love you too," he whispers, leaning down to kiss his cheek. "Always."