I lost inspiration for this fic so I decided to just finish it off as quick as possible. I'm not too happy with it but I hope you enjoy it anyway. And thanks for all the reviews and story alerts and favourites. X

"Blaine! BLAINE!"

His screams filled the quiet morning air. Neighbours were opening their windows to see what all the fuss was about, but Kurt had never been less bothered about causing a scene.

He couldn't stop screaming. His throat was still painfully sore and the hysterical screaming certainly didn't improve the matter, but he couldn't help himself. He screamed and screamed until he was on the verge of coughing up blood. He was still dizzy from the terrifying Portkey ride and he was only moments away from vomiting all over himself. He barely even cared about that. All he cared about was the fact that the person he loved more than anything was stuck in a house with his violent homophobic father and there was nothing he could do to protect him.

"Kurt, shit, man, what are you doing here? What happened?"

Finn had run out of the house and was now kneeling beside him in the grass.
Kurt just gasped and tried to calm down enough to remember how to breathe. He was too in shock and the breath just got caught in his throat. He was turning blue when Finn finally managed to force a breath out of him.

"Shit, shit, shit", Finn muttered and tried to calm Kurt by rubbing his back. But he was so nervous himself that it barely helped. He was so useless at comforting people. He always said the wrong things.

"B-Blaine- h-he-", Kurt gasped out, his entire body shaking with sobs.

"What about him? What happened?", Finn asked, trying to coax an answer out of him.

But Kurt was beyond salvation. He just broke down even more, clutching himself as he cried his entire heart out.
Finn shakily swooped him up in his arms and carried him inside. Kurt was helplessly sobbing into his shoulder and Finn was barely able to convince Kurt to let go of him long enough to lay him down on the couch in their living room.

He dashed to the kitchen to get his brother a glass of water. He felt heartbreakingly helpless and all he could do was sit next to Kurt and offer him the water every other minute when the sobs were slightly less hysterical. And even though Kurt's throat was throbbing painfully he couldn't take a single sip of water.

This went on for over an hour before Kurt had finally emptied himself off all emotions. Soon he was just lying with his knees propped up against his chest, staring numbly into the distance. Every time Finn tried to bring up Blaine again, Kurt lost it and fell back into that hole of endless sobs. When he had finally managed to stay relatively calm for ten minutes straight, Finn decided to make another attempt of talking about the source of Kurt's break down.

"Dude I'm really freaking out here, can you just tell me what-"

Kurt wiped his nose on his sleeve and a small sob escaped him.

And then his eyes rolled back into his head and he fell backwards and landed heavily on the couch.

Finn was usually not the greatest when it came to quick logic, but this time he instantly knew that Kurt had passed out from the shock combined with dehydration from all the crying and lack of water refills. So he forced some water down his brother's throat and then eased him down in a horizontal position again. He propped up a few pillows underneath his head and then tucked him in under a nice and cosy blanket. Then he settled himself into an armchair next to the couch to watch over him while he slept.

Rachel had gone home an hour or so ago to get some stuff she had forgotten the first time she went over and she was expected to come back to the Hummel house in a few hours. She didn't live too far away actually, which was probably a big factor in why they had managed to stay together so far over the summer.

Finn had completely forgotten about her due to the whole drama with Kurt and was to say the least shocked to see her suddenly standing in front of him.
He must have dozed off a little on his brotherly watch-out and his head instantly snapped to the couch to see if Kurt was still there. He was now sleeping peacefully.

"What is he doing here?", Rachel asked and motioned to the sleeping boy. "I thought the two of us were going to have a romantic dinner tonight."

"I don't know, some stuff went down and I found him crying outside the house. Guess he had a fight with his boyfriend or something. He didn't really say anything, he was so shocked", Finn said.

"Poor him", Rachel said sympathetically. "Shouldn't he sleep in his bed instead of here?"

"I want to keep an eye on him. You should have seen him, he was in terrible shape. We can just watch our movie on low volume, okay? I'm worried about him", Finn said.

"Of course", Rachel said lovingly and leaned down to kiss him. "I'll go get snacks."

Finn popped in a DVD and settled down in his chair again. He couldn't stop glancing over at Kurt in case he had woken up again. He really wanted to know what had happened because he had never seen Kurt so distraught before and it really worried him. And if that Blaine dude had done something to hurt his little brother – well, technically they were step-brothers and the same age, but Finn considered it his job to protect Kurt from harm and that included kicking the asses of his douchy boyfriends – then he was sure as hell going to pay for it.

Rachel returned with a bowl of popcorn and settled down in his lap. They had barely made it through 20 minutes of the movie before Kurt moaned softly and they both jumped in surprise.
Finn was on his feet within the next five seconds.

"Dude, you alright?", he asked anxiously.

Kurt sat up, gingerly touching his aching head.

"What happened?", he asked slowly.

"You just turned up on the lawn a while ago and you were totally weird and then you passed out", Finn told him.

Kurt processed these news for a few seconds before he leapt off the couch, making him wince from his throbbing head ache.

"Is he here?", he asked.

"Who?", Rachel asked dumbly.

"Blaine! Is he here?"

"No...", she said carefully. "What did he do to you?"

"He didn't do anything! His brother found out about us and he told their father and he snapped and- and then Blaine forced me to leave and I think his father is hurting him and- and-"

He was once again reduced to a sobbing pile.
Rachel sat down on the couch and forced him to sit too. Finn went to get more water and a couple of aspirins for the head ache. Kurt was more willing to drink water now and for a few minutes the couple just sat by and watched as he swallowed an entire litre in eager, thirsty gulps.

When he was done, he wiped his mouth with his sleeve, something that happened about once every five years because he was so careful not to stain his clothes. Today he didn't even bother checking what damage had been done. Besides, he was way under dressed today anyway.

"So, what did you say about his dad?", Rachel asked gently.

She took his hand in hers and didn't complain in the slightest when he squeezed her hand so hard it might fall off. Then he, a little more calmly, told them all about what had happened at the Anderson mansion. He had just come to the point where he took the Portkey and left behind the love of his life when there was a loud thump outside the door. The next second Carole appeared in the doorway. Her already worried expression turned panicked when she set eyes on Kurt's curled up form.

"Oh honey, what happened?", she asked and hurried over to hug him.

"B-Blaine-", he choked out.

"I thought it might be about him. We-"

"What are you doing home? I thought you wouldn't come home before Sunday!", Finn exclaimed.

Rachel had suddenly stiffened considerably. Right, she wasn't really allowed to be here.

Carole ignored the question and remained focused on Kurt. She raised her hand to cup his chin and point it upwards so their eyes met. Kurt had never seen her look so serious.

"We found him a few miles from here in the middle of the road. He's in bad shape", she said quietly.

Kurt's eyes widened.

"He's- he's here? How- what-"

He didn't get any further until Burt had appeared in the doorway clutching a very much unconscious Blaine in his arms.
He was bleeding from his head and he had a nasty cut above his right eyebrow and to add to the obvious damage Kurt could spot a dozen bruises all over his body.
Kurt's eyes immediately teared up again and despite the thunder like throb in his head he leapt off the couch. Every inch of his body was screaming at him to help him, save him, protect him.

Burt laid his unresponsive body down onto the bedding that Kurt had recently slept on. Rachel and Finn moved over to the arm chair again to leave room for Kurt who immediately slid in under Blaine and wrapped his arms protectively around him.

Blaine was propped up against his chest, his head safely tucked into the crook of Kurt's neck.

The atmosphere in the room was so tense you could slice it with a knife like a cake.

"We should clean that", Burt said suddenly and motioned to Blaine's head wound.

Kurt looked down at the fragile boy in his arms and images of what had caused these injuries flashed by his eyes. Mr Anderson. If he ever saw that man again, he would not be responsible for his actions. But the most overwhelming thought was that it was Kurt's fault that Blaine was now unconscious in his arms. If he had listened to his gut and not agreed to come over to Blaine's house, his family would have never found out about their son's sexuality and he would be safe, although closeted. That would have been so much better.

Reluctantly he allowed Burt to scoop the boy up again and carry him into the bathroom where he and Carole took care of his injuries. Kurt had tried to help, he really had, but he had received some tough blows in the fight at the Anderson mansion and as soon as he tried to stand up he doubled over and vomited all over the carpet. He was so dizzy he could barely stand, which is why Finn gently guided him over to the couch and forcibly laid him down on his back while he and Rachel dealt with the disgusting mess he had made.

He had always hated vomiting. It was so disgusting and humiliating. He continued to drink lots of water until Burt finally brought Blaine back, a clean white bandage wrapped around his head and torso.

"I think he'll be fine once he wakes up but I'll go call a doctor just to check", Carole said and disappeared.

Finn popped in Beauty and the Beast into the DVD player before he and Rachel went to his room.

Burt hovered around for a while, asking if Kurt wanted anything to eat or if he wanted a bucket to vomit in or if there was anything at all he wanted.

Kurt just shrugged the concern off. He had water, Blaine and a Disney movie. That's all he needed for now.

After a while his dad left as well, although he only moved over to the kitchen which was within ear shot in case Kurt would need anything, and left the two boys alone on the couch.

Kurt had Blaine securely wrapped in his arms, a blanket surrounding them both. He couldn't focus on the movie though. He was constantly glancing down to see if Blaine had regained consciousness. There was a big nasty bruise on his jaw that Kurt couldn't help but stare helplessly at. That bruise was his fault.

He kept revisiting the memory where he had left Blaine to his cruel fate, fighting the tears that threatened to well up inside him with little success. It took more than two hours before Blaine even stirred. Kurt immediately let out a strangled gasp of relief, causing Blaine to drowsily open his eyes.

He tried to sit up and at first Kurt let him, but then the pain of his injuries hit him and Kurt pulled him down into his arms again.

"Shh, don't move", he soothed and gently brushed Blaine's hair out of his eyes.

"What happened?", Blaine mumbled, not even trying to fight Kurt's gentle grip around him.

"Terry told your dad about us, and he got... upset."

To Kurt's surprise, Blaine snorted.

"That's the understatement of the year."

"I know. I'm sorry."

Blaine succeeded in sitting up this time. He winced a little as his hurt ribs reminded him of the extent of his injury, but he powered through it and straightened up a little more.

"Why are you sorry? I dragged you into the house of hell for no good reason", he said. It came out a little sharper than intended. "Besides, it isn't even that bad. I'm fine."

"Really? You're completely fine?"

"I promise. I'm fine."

Kurt gave him a gentle prod in the ribs, making Blaine wince with pain.

"You're not fine, Blaine. Dad and Carole found you unconscious in the middle of a road! What were you even doing there?"

Blaine blushed.

"I was trying to come here but something went wrong and I ended up in the middle of a forest. I almost passed out then but I managed to get out to the road but then it was just too much, I guess. Look, I should just go home and try to work things out with dad."

"And what would you say to him?"

"Tell him it was all a misunderstanding, that I'm not ga- no, you know what, I'm tired of hiding. I'll just go tell him everything and I'll force him to listen and everything will be fine."

Kurt rolled his eyes. He suspected that Blaine's painkillers hadn't completely worn off yet.

"Do you honestly expect me to let you run off to your dad after he beat you senseless? You're staying here with me", he said.

"I don't want to be any trouble..."

"I've always admired your courage, Blaine, but sometimes you can be really thick."

"Did you just quote Harry Potter to me?"

"I believe I did."

"Well, I can't really argue with that. But I'll just stay for tonight, then I'll go home."

Kurt rolled his eyes again.

"I'm not letting you anywhere near that man until he has had some serious therapy."

"But I can't stay here forever. Your parents will kick me out. I'm terrible to live with", Blaine argued.

Kurt leaned in to kiss his cheek as softly as possible as to not hurt him further.

"Leave them to me, okay?", he said.

Blaine sighed. "Yeah, alright."

Kurt got up and tucked Blaine in under the blanket, completely ignoring Blaine's complaints of being treated like a sick five-year-old.

"I'd advice you to be quiet and let me take care of you", Kurt said sternly.

"Why? I would win in a fight with you any day. Don't you remember when-"

"Because on more than one occasion have you seriously injured yourself to save me and that's really stupid and self-destructive and I won't have it! I'm not a defenceless princess and you are not Prince Charming."

"I thought you said I was your Prince Charming", Blaine said with the most adorable pout.

Kurt couldn't help but smile.

"Yes, you are, but only in the sense that you are ridiculously handsome and Prince Charmingish. But I don't need you to fight your way through a thorny scenery and slay a dragon to wake me from my 100th year long beauty sleep."

Blaine laughed softly at the cheesy comparison.

"Yeah, well, he was going to hurt you and I can't stand seeing you hurt", he said, more seriously.

"And you think I enjoy watching you in pain?", Kurt snorted. "Just wait here, I'll go talk to dad. Don't get up."

He gave Blaine his strictest look and then went out into the kitchen.

Blaine decided that he couldn't do much to change Kurt's mind for now – once he set his mind to something, he wouldn't stop until he got it – so he figured he should just use his energy to rest instead. He needed to get stronger so he could properly argue with Kurt about leaving in at least a couple of days. Blaine was raised not to rely on people, and he certainly never took charity. Staying in another's home when he was injured and accepting their care and shelter felt like such a exploitation he just couldn't stand even thinking about it.

He wanted to go home, even though the thought of facing his father again terrified him. But he would have to do it some day, so why not do it as soon as possible? He couldn't just cut them out of his life forever. He loved them. Right?

He had almost fallen asleep when Kurt returned. Before he knew it, Kurt had popped in another DVD and curled up underneath him, his firm arms surrounding Blaine. He had never felt safer, although he didn't care to admit it.

Kurt had really helped him abandon some of his childhood values, but he still had trouble admitting to needing another person. He wanted to be strong by himself, even though he knew it was stupid. And he wanted to be Kurt's knight in shining armour who saved him from violent fathers and everything that was bad in the world, but he wouldn't allow Kurt to be his knight.

"They say you can stay as long as you want", Kurt assured him.

"What if I don't want to stay?"

"Okay, scratch that. They say you can stay as long as I want you to stay."

"That's not fair. You don't own me."

"Mmhm, if you say so."

"Kurt Elizabeth Hummel! Are you trying to objectify me?"

"Of course not, honey. Now, how about you stop arguing with me and focus on how nice and comfy it would be to sleep for a while."

Blaine snorted. "Didn't anyone teach you to be nice to injured people?"

"So you are injured now, are you?", Kurt teased, earning a gentle slap on his knee, the only part Blaine could reach without putting too much pressure on his body.

"I might be injured but that doesn't give you the right to treat me like I'm a helpless wounded animal you picked out from the animal shelter", Blaine said between gritted teeth.

He knew Kurt was just joking around, but it did hurt his pride to feel this exposed and dependent on someone else.

Kurt leaned forward to press a soft kiss to Blaine's temple.

"Just let me be your Prince Charming for once", he whispered.

Blaine allowed a smile to settle on his lips.

"Okay. Just this once."

"Just this once."