Pain and Love

Eleanor released him just long enough to grab a blanket and wrap him in it, then took his mug of hot cocoa and pushed it back into his hands to drink. "Of course it's right of you to come to me," she whispered, rubbing her hand up and down his back. "I'm your girlfriend; I'm not here just to be pretty and kiss you sometimes. I'm here to support you and help you through the hard times as best I can; you can come to me any time and I won't complain, I promise."

She brushed his hair out of his face and took his glasses off for him, going quiet to listen to him speak. Even if she wanted to interrupt him to try and tell him he's wrong, that no he must not've done anything wrong, she kept her opinion to herself for now. He didn't need someone to argue with right now, he needed someone to listen.

"Let it all out," she whispered, wiping his face for him again and encouraging him to drink the hot cocoa. Her fingers brushed his hair away again, smoothing it down as she took him into her arms and gently squeezed him. "What happened?"

Eleanor hummed and gave him another gentle squeeze, rocking their bodies back and forth just a little. She went quiet again as he spoke, listening to him but not quite offering her input--she wasn't exactly sure how to respond when she knew next to nothing, after all, and she didn't want to give him bad advice on accident.

"Don't worry," she murmured, loosening her hold on him so she could pull away and look at him. "You don't have to tell me anything or force yourself to talk if you don't want to; I know it must be tough for you. Besides, it's been a long day, and you look tired. Why don't you try getting some rest and I'll work on making some food?" She guided him to lay down, very gentle and careful of his hidden bruises.

Eleanor kissed him on the forehead before standing up and starting to move back towards the kitchen. She could at least get him a refill on hot cocoa for now, as well as a glass of water and some more ibuprofen on the bedside table if he needed it.

Eleanor started to give him a warning look when he sat back up, almost ready to tell him again that he needs rest, but she stopped when he began to speak. She placed her other hand over his when he took her first, giving him a gentle, reassuring squeeze to encourage him. The second hand left again to stroke his tail when she noticed it tighten, trying to keep him from getting any more worked up.

Her gaze hardened when he mentioned his father drinking, and again when he said his father got angry when he was drunk, too. She pursed her lips, looking very serious with anger burning behind her dark, dark eyes. The bruises must have been from his father, she thought. It was no wonder he spent so many nights over at her dorm.

"We need to get you help, Kurt. I know you want this to stay between us, but we need to contact the authorities--or the school at the very least to get you into that new dorm and away from your father." She kissed away the tears running down his cheeks and pulled him closer to comfort him. Her hands ran up and down his back while she kissed his cheeks and his forehead and his neck.

"Don't you worry," she whispered determinedly, "Everything will be okay. I'll make sure of it."

Eleanor shot him a look. "This isn't something you can choose, Kurt; you don't have a plate of vegetables in front of you. You have an abusive father in front of you. You know what the authorities will do? Arrest him so he can't hurt anyone again. Would you rather keep being abused, or him keep abusing the people around him and ruin their lives? Or would you rather he be put away so he can get help, and your family can be safe?"

She sighed heavily and patted Kurt's back until he let go of her. There was no doubt that she was fuming inside next to her feelings of deep concern for his well-being. "You are--right that you're going to be okay. You're going to be great if I can help it." It took some effort to stop herself from swearing; curse words were not going to solve this situation nor make anything better.

Her glasses fogged up with her hot, irate breathing. She took them off and set them as gently as she could on her bedside table and stood up to go to the kitchen and start readying the ingredients for dinner.

"I'm not upset with you," she said after a while. "Never with you, Kurt. I'm upset that you've been hurt by people who are supposed to care for you and love you. You can't control that, and it's not your fault. It was ultimately your father's decision to horrendously mistreat you, no one else's. He chose to do those things."

"It's not your fault."

"That doesn't make it any different, Kurt. He's still hurting someone, and that someone happens to be you." Eleanor took a breath to say more, but she silenced herself upon his request to stop talking about it. She pressed her lips back together and returned to adding ingredients to a pot. Despite being as blind as a bat without her glasses, she somehow managed to grab exactly what she needed and added just the right amounts without measuring.

Her blind food preparation was interrupted by arms wrapping around her waist, and she blinked over at Kurt. "There's no need to thank me," she murmured and wrapped an arm around his waist to give him a light squeeze in return. It was difficult to avoid potentially aggravating any of his injuries when he flinched just from moving, but she was very careful nonetheless.

Eleanor let go and continued on with her cooking, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. "I hope you like macaroni and cheese. It sounds simple, but I'm making it from scratch. No prepackaged cheese powders, and more than salt for seasoning." She turned on the stove and leaned back to wait and listen for the pot's milky ingredients to come to a simmer.