Kurt felt guilty.

He had practically spent this entire school year so far blackmailing people. From jocks, to stop the taunting, to his old friends to keep their mouths shut. Especially that last one had been terrible for him but still… he hasn't felt as guilty as he felt now.

Anderson had just stood there, physically trembling with fear. He didn't get mad, or defensive. He was just terribly scared and hurt.

Maybe it was a good thing he did this. Blaine really needed to toughen up if he wanted to step out of McKinley alive at the end of the school year. The little nerd had to learn how to stand up for himself.

Blaine Anderson has been through hell and back. Kurt could see it with one simple look into his eyes. Other might not notice it straight away but Kurt could recognize that look anywhere. It was the one he saw in the mirror every morning. And it was scaring him.

He was scared of his feelings for the Anderson kid. The sympathy and… attraction he feels towards the nerdy boy was dangerous, Kurt knew, and the only way of avoiding further escalation was making the boy hate him. A lot.

'Ouch!' Kurt forced a smirk upon his face as he heard Blaine's cry of pain, mixed with the sound of his back colliding with a locker. He stopped in his tracks, standing right in front of Blaine, who kept his eyes fixed on the floor.

'Oops,' Kurt mocked. 'I'm sorry, did I hurt you?' Blaine opened his mouth angrily, ready to say something but Kurt cut him off. 'Anyway, I remember being assigned to show you to your class so what's your next class, dweeb?' Blaine frowned but obediently checked his schedule.

'AP Algebra,' he muttered and Kurt involuntarily felt his heart ache a little at his weak defeated tone. 'But you don't have to-'

'Jesus, you really are a nerd,' Kurt interrupted. 'Okay, let's see. I think that's Mr. Johnson's class, isn't it?' Blaine just shrugged as he grabbed his books from his locker. 'So you're ignoring me now?'

'I don't know, Kurt,' Blaine suddenly snapped. 'What do you expect me to do? Jump around in joy when the guy who threatened to out me to the entire school finally realizes it might be a good idea to actually do what a teacher tells him too. But don't worry, Kurt, I'll find my way around. I'll just tell Ms. Haggart you helped me and you'll never have to talk to the weird fag ever again.' Blaine said all of this in a very hushed tone, making everybody around them unable to hear his words, but still they all felt like a knife in his heart.

'Fine, just get lost,' Kurt snapped back. He didn't even wait for a reply but simply turned away and walked off, leaving a fuming and hurt Blaine to find his AP Algebra classroom on his own.

'I saw you talking to the new kid this morning. Didn't seem to be going too well.' Kurt glared up at Quinn as she spoke while taking a drag from his cigarette. He held his glare on her as long as he held the smoke before releasing both in a sigh.

'Haggart wanted me to show him around school as some sort of 'Help-Hummel-Back-On-Track-project,' he replied. 'Apparently because being around his awkward nerdy ass was supposed to 'teach me a lesson.' Kurt rolled his eyes.

'I bet you spend a lot of time observing that ass, didn't you, Hummel.' Kurt sent her a vicious glare but she didn't seemed very impressed. 'I mean, come on, who do you think you're kidding?'

'What are you on about?' Kurt tried to make his voice sound bored and annoyed but he couldn't help feeling like he was caught.

'You're being a complete dick to him when he's near you but as soon as he turns around you start giving him these longing looks, the same you always give to the Glee club.' Quinn's voice became a little more gentle at the mention of their old friend but they both knew going back to that life was not an option, for neither of them.

'I can't be with him, Quinn.' Kurt closed his eyes as he took another long drag of his cigarette. Quinn clearly didn't understand: he was only trying to help him and himself in the process. This was better for everyone. Quinn sighed before completely changing the subject.

'How's your father?' Kurt shrugged, trying his best to look indifferent.

'Still cuddling up to Finn, doing manly stuff together, all that shit.' Quinn huffed but didn't comment. That's probably why they liked being around each other. They'd ask about each other's problem but wouldn't nag. 'What about Beth?'

'Shelby's still being a bitch,' Quinn muttered. 'But I'll get her back. I know I will.' Kurt merely nodded, refraining from saying anything. Both of them were suffering, living an unhealthy life and desperately trying to keep their head up while at the same time do their best at not drowning in their misery. Quinn had serious problems, Kurt knew. He was almost certain she was suffering from depression but at the same time she knew about the razors he had hidden in a box beneath his bed.

Kurt, so lost in his thoughts, didn't realize a group of people had joined them under the bleachers until he heard the sound of a body slamming into metal, followed by a with pain filled whimper. He looked up to see a few football players, including his step-brother Finn Hudson, standing around a small boy, who was curled up into himself, he head bowed. Despite the boy's protective stance, Kurt recognized him immediately: it was Blaine.

'So, did you do our homework, nerd,' a jock Kurt recognized, with a shiver running down his spine, as Dave Karofsky spat. When Blaine didn't replied straight away, Karofsky grabbed his shoulders and slammed him into the metal fence once more. Blaine whimpered again.

'Y-y-yeah, I d-did it,' he whispered then, his voice so soft Kurt had to strain in order to hear. He opened his bag with heavily trembling hands and pulled out a couple of papers. He hesitantly handed them over to Finn Hudson, making direct eye contact with him in the process. Finn shifted uneasily and Kurt realized why. Finn was in the Glee club: Blaine probably considered him as a friend but was brutally betrayed. Well, welcome to the club.

'Hmm, it looks okay,' Azimio, another jock, said, pulling the papers from Finn's hands, which too, were shaking. Karofsky nodded at his friend before turning back to the terrified boy in front of him.

'If we get anything under an A on this, you'll pay.' All the jocks slammed their bodies into Blaine's as their own sick way of saying goodbye and left, high fiving each other and laughing out loud. Blaine slowly let himself sink to the ground, seemingly unaware of Kurt and Quinn, and put his head in his hands, his body still shaking. His satchel was on the floor a few feet away from him where the last football player to leave had kicked it with an evil smirk. Without even realizing what he was doing, Kurt stepped forward, picking the satchel up from the ground and started walking over to Blaine. When the latter heard the footsteps his head shot up, probably thinking one of the jocks had returned to finish him off. When his eyes met Kurt, it was like a wall slammed up behind them. He stood up, stumbling a little and scowled at Kurt.

'Give me my bag.' His voice was surprisingly steady and firm for somebody who was just crying their eyes out on the ground. Kurt was a little taken aback but also a little angry. He was just trying to be nice to Anderson. With a huff he threw the satchel in Blaine's direction, who caught it mid-air.

'You really are a bitch, Anderson,' Kurt muttered annoyed, turning around. He didn't expect Blaine to grab his arm and turn his around roughly. Kurt hissed in pain as fingers dug into fresh cuts but Blaine ignored him.

'Stop,' he yelled in Kurt's face. 'Please, stop! I'm so sick of being bullied! I came here in order to be safe. To start anew without being beat up every single day. Please, let me have that. You don't have to see me; I can go out of my way to avoid you but please, let me be.' Kurt jerked his arm back from Blaine's grasp and glared back at the desperate looking boy.

'This is exactly your problem,' he yelled back. 'You let everybody walk right over you! Do you really believe you'll survive more than one week in this school with that attitude-'

'Well, I tried standing up for myself but I ended up in a coma so I thought keeping my head down would be a better idea,' Blaine snapped. Kurt was speechless and Blaine took that moment to spin on his heels and sprint away, leaving a completely silent and confused Kurt in his wake.

Blaine kept to his word: he completely avoided Kurt. Kurt, in his turn, left him alone too. They told Ms. Haggart the past week had gone fine and left it to that. During English, Blaine now sat with his head bowed over his notes, basically pretending Kurt didn't exist. Kurt was glad, as well as devastated. Blaine fucked with his head. In Kurt's eyes, he was perfect in every way. He was everything Kurt wanted to be and wanted to have. That same thing also made Kurt hate him. Kurt wanted him so bad it hurt and he needed a way to let it all out. He needed his great escape.

That's why he was currently picking the lock of the auditorium. He knew the Glee club still had a piano on stage there and since they were all in the choir room, he was sure not to get caught.

'Porcelain!' Well, not so sure… Kurt stood up and looked at Sue Sylvester who was glaring at him. 'What the hell do you think you're doing?' Kurt raised a single eyebrow.

'Baking a cake,' he replied sarcastically. 'What does it look like I'm doing?' Coach Sylvester narrowed her eyes at Kurt's rudeness and started rummaging through her bag. Kurt was just wondering if she was looking for a weapon to physically harm him with when she pulled out a key and handed it over to Kurt.

'I want it back at four,' she stated. 'And don't forget to lock it after you leave.' Kurt couldn't help but smile at his old cheerleading coach.

'Thank you, coach.' Sue just nodded and walked away, off to threaten some freshman who dropped his drink on the floor. Kurt opened the door to the auditorium and slipped inside. He flipped on the lights and walked over to the piano on stage. He sat down on the piano and let his fingers get reacquainted with the ivory keys before he started playing and singing.

Bad day, looking for a way,
home, looking for the great escape.
Gets in his car and drives away,
far from all the things that we are.

He never heard the auditorium door open; he was too absorbed in the music.

Puts on a smile and breathes it in
and breathes it out, he says,
bye bye bye to all of the noise.
Oh, he says, bye bye bye to all of the noise.

Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo

He closed his eyes, letting a few tears slide down his cheeks. He thought of his father, who was completely at lost as to what to do with Kurt. He busied himself with spending even more precious guy time with Finn, unknowingly shoving his own son deeper and deeper into depression.

Hey child, things are looking down.
That's okay, you don't need to win anyways.
Don't be afraid, just eat up all the gray
and it will fade all away.
Don't let yourself fall down.

Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo

Bad day, looking for the great escape.
He says, bad day, looking for the great escape.
On a bad day, looking for the great escape,
the great escape.

Kurt never noticed a pair of hazel eyes staring at him from the back of the auditorium, slowly filling with tears.

A/N Wow, I'm sorry… For everything, that is! Especially for the long wait. I've busied myself with too many other things, completely neglecting my other fanfictions. But anyway, I hope the chapter was alright… let me know what you thought?

By the way, the amazing song in this chapter is The Great Escape by Patrick Watson. :-)

Love you all so much for sticking around! 3