A/N: So here it is, my first Glee fanfic! I'm really excited. This is going to start out pretty sappy, but I tried to keep everyone relatively in-character.

My motivation: Simple. I want Kurt back at McKinley. Like, yesterday. I have nothing against Dalton or Blaine. In fact, I like Blaine. But every time I read a Klaine fic (and there are quite a few out there now) where Kurt is totally happy at fanon!Dalton, I cry a little inside. Not that Klaine is not a great pairing; it is. But I firmly believe Kurt really belongs at McKinley, where he stands out. I'm a big sucker for Glee club friendship, which is what this starts out as. There will be drama and maybe some dark themes in not-so-distant chapters.

Pairings: All canon; I haven't decided if there will be Klaine, but Blaine will make appearances either way. Finn and Rachel are still separate when this begins, but there will definitely be Finchel. Just so you know.

Time Period: This takes place in February, around the time of the Superbowl episode. I may or may not include spoilers we've been given for that episode. I'll forewarn you if I decide to.

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee.

1

It started out just like any other Monday. Then the time for Glee arrived.

It was about five minutes before class was to start, and everyone was hanging out except Mercedes, Finn, and Mr. Schue, who had yet to arrive.

Santana was braiding Brittany's ponytail while the blonde Cheerio chatted merrily with Artie in the row in front. Puck had his arm flung around Santana's shoulders and he was whispering something in her ear that made her giggle. In the back row, Quinn and Sam were being their usual sugary-sweet selves, holding hands and talking quietly. Next to them, Tina and Mike were sharing some "Asian kisses." Rachel sat a seat down from Artie's wheelchair, flipping through a folder of sheet music.

The steady hum of noise was interrupted when Mercedes skidded into the room, her bag hanging off her arm and her face split in half by a wide smile.

"Kurt's coming back!" she crowed.

The others had fallen silent at her entrance; now they mostly just looked confused.

"So what?" Santana said, breaking the silence. She continued weaving her fingers through Brittany's hair.

The others mentally agreed. Kurt had come back to visit every few weeks in the not-quite three months since he'd begun attending Dalton. They all missed him, even if they wouldn't admit it, but even Mercedes never got this excited when he came home. When they did see him, Kurt was always quieter and a bit more reserved than he'd been before his transfer, and this was somewhat unsettling.

But Mercedes shook her head, her grin stretching even wider.

"No—I mean he's transferring. He's coming back to McKinley!"

There was another moment of silence. Then pandemonium.

Tina shrieked. And then joined Mercedes on the floor and embraced her. Brittany tried to jump forward to hug her boyfriend from behind, but Santana's hands yanked her head back and she let out a squeal of pain.

"Sorry, Brit!" Santana said, immediately untangling her fingers.

Quinn and Sam both looked pleasantly surprised, and Mike scooted over to join them as they began chattering animatedly. Puck leaned back casually to listen in. Rachel was already talking (to herself) about the song she could sing to welcome Kurt home.

Finn rushed into the room, phone in hand and a big smile on his face.

"Hey, guys! Kurt is…" His voice trailed off as he took in the scene before him. "Guess you already found out?"

Mercedes laughed and gave the tall teen's hand a friendly squeeze.

"Sorry, honey. I couldn't wait."

The two joined the small huddle around Artie's wheelchair, everyone now discussing how best to express their feelings about Kurt's return. Finn didn't even notice he was sitting next to Rachel until their knees brushed accidentally. The two stared at each other; slowly, Finn smiled and Rachel's lips curled up.

Mr. Schue walked in a minute later, distractedly shuffling through a heaping pile of Spanish quizzes.

"Sorry I'm late-"

He looked up and his eyebrows pulled together in confusion. None of them had heard him; they were still crowded into a knot, laughing and shouting out song titles, desperate to be heard over the person next to them.

"Hey!" Will shouted, putting his things down. "Guys!"

They turned to him, beaming.

"Yes, Mr. Schue?" Rachel asked primly, doing her best to ignore the burning spot where Finn's leg was resting against hers.

"Not that I'm not glad to see you so thrilled about class, but could we keep the noise to an acceptable level? What's got into you all?"

"You haven't heard?" Tina asked.

Their teacher's confused look was all the answer they needed.

"Kurt's coming back to McKinley!" Brittany blurted out, clapping her hands together.

It took a moment for comprehension to dawn on Mr. Schue's face, but then he smiled.

"That's great!"

And they knew he didn't mean that just because they were down a member now that Lauren had suddenly quit the week before.

Kurt was coming home.

:

Mr. Schue gave them the rest of class to talk about a song for Kurt's return. When the bell rang, he pulled Finn aside as the other kids left.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Finn nodded and pulled up a chair opposite his teacher.

"What's up?"

Mr. Schue leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and meshing his hands together.

"I think it's great that Kurt's coming back—I really do. But…do you know why, exactly?"

Finn bit his lip; then he nodded slowly. "He doesn't really tell me everything…but I've kind of put it together. You've noticed he doesn't seem as…well, happy, when he's here?" Mr. Schue nodded, so Finn went on. "Honestly, I think Dalton was smothering him. The uniforms and all that? It's not Kurt. He's never really been all that happy there, but he had…Wayne?" Finn stopped, unsure of the name. Then he shook his head. "I think it was Blaine, actually. From what I can tell, they sort of started going out. And it wasn't working."

Mr. Schue remembered the boy he'd seen with Kurt when he visited at Christmas, and felt a slight pang.

"Oh."

Finn shrugged. "So apparently it ended kind of badly, and then Kurt didn't have a reason to stay. He just really wanted to come home. And Burt and Mom agreed."

Mr. Schue nodded and sat back in his chair, folding his arms.

"Like I said, I'm happy about this. But the bullies…aren't just going to disappear."

Finn nodded solemnly. "I know. And Kurt knows that, too."

"You need to watch out for him. You and the other guys-"

"And Mercedes," Finn interjected with a slight grin. "She's more frightening than us when it comes to someone threatening Kurt. But I totally get what you mean, Mr. Schue. And we've got his back." He hesitated before straightening resolutely. "I've got his back."

Will nodded again. "I'm glad to hear that."

They both stood, and Finn moved toward the door.

"See you tomorrow!" he called back to his teacher. He'd almost made it out when the older man called him back.

"Finn! When does Kurt get here?"

Finn grinned. "Monday."

"So we have less than a week to put this performance together. Tell everyone to come up with their best song ideas. We choose one tomorrow."

"Will do!"

And Finn saluted and jogged down the hallway after his friends.