Rise Above The Ashes
Hey guys! So this was written for the Blaine Anderson Big Bang 2015 over on tumblr, I hope that you enjoy it :) . Please check out Sam's (klainebowsanddramioneflies-tumblr-com (replace the dashes with dots)) artwork that goes with the story it is totally amazing and she was awesome to work with. To those of you waiting (so patiently I'm sorry it's been so long!) for Meet The Anderson's updates, I am hoping to have one out by the end of the week. In the meantime I hope that you enjoy this story.
Chapter 1
"Hey Burt take a right up here!"
"A right?" Burt questioned furrowing his brow and batting his stepsons prodding hand away from his shoulder.
Sam nodded from beside him, turning around to smirk at a pouting Finn. "A right for sure. Blaine taught us it as a way to beat the traffic getting back from Westerville after a gaming night with the Warblers. It cuts off like thirty minutes, thanks to getting rid of all of this." Sam waved an arm at the taillights that seemed to be surrounding them as Burt began to ease towards the right, eager to try out the new turn off the teenagers had told him about.
Flicking on his blinker to take the turn when they finally crept up to the junction Burt shrugged, "Well I hope you boys know where we're going. After that game all anyone wants to do is get home and forget about it." Sam and Finn murmured their agreement each enamoured by finding other scores out on their phones. "Where is Blaine anyway? He was supposed to come with us tonight, right?"
Finn and Sam glances nervously at each other, Sam reaching over to mess with the heating controls.
Sighing, Finn ran a hand through his messy hair. "He said that after the whole Kurt break up mess a few weeks back that he didn't really think it was a very good idea."
"He wasn't at school today either, so maybe he's sick or something," Sam chimed in with a shrug, burrowing down inside his soft red coat.
Burt grunted, not believing Blaine to be sick for one second, and making a mental note to go and check on the boy the first opportunity that he got. Turning his attention to the dark road that lay before them he grimaced, wishing that they'd stuck to the busy but well lit highway. The snow, unusually early in the season for Ohio, had started to fall thick and fast ten minutes earlier and showed no signs of letting up as it whirled around the silver truck. Swatting Finn's hand from the radio dial once more Burt turned all of his focus to the road, attempting to block out Sam and Finn's incessant arguing over the choice of music to concentrate on the barely visible road.
"Burt, look out!" Sam's terrified shriek cut straight through the shield of silence Burt had tried to create, causing Burt's eyes to scan the full length of the road as fast as they could.
As soon as the older man saw the large bump in the middle of the road that had prompted Sam to yell, he swerved turning the wheel as hard and fast as he could on the slippery surface, swerving the truck to the side. Narrowly missing the lump in the road, the truck pulled to a squeaky stop, the occupants panting heavily.
"Nobody tells Kurt about this, okay?" Burt breathed; leaning back in his seat and thanking deities he didn't particularly believe in that everyone was alive and well still.
"What the hell was that?" Finn said, throwing open the back door and tumbling out of the back seat to get a better look.
Sam glanced once to Burt before shrugging and following Finn from the car. Burt watched whilst the pair skidded and skated over the icy road towards the shape.
"No…wait boys!" Burt yelled as he came to his senses, fumbling with the door and bolting to where the teenagers stood next to the unmoving black object that was now almost completely covered over with snow.
Glancing at the two boys, Burt knelt down next to the item and carefully brushed the snow away, thankful that at least for now the weather had calmed and the snow had stopped falling. His heart stuttered in his chest when his worst fears were confirmed as he realised the bundle was a person. Throwing the truck keys to Finn, he nodded back towards the vehicle before instructing Sam to help him unbury the freezing person.
"Quickly Sam, this person needs to get into the warmth as soon as possible." Noticing the boy had stopped, Burt turned to look at him, "Sam, c'mon!"
Sam shook his head, a slight whimper leaving his lips. "He looks dead," Sam whispered, paling significantly in his red parka.
Moving next to the boy, Burt sucked in a breath at the sight of the gelled hair, snowflakes freezing into it, long eyelashes curled against unnaturally pale cheeks. Reaching out, he felt the boy's skin, relieved when it was still slightly warm to the touch. His fingers burrowing carefully under the layer of Blaine's scarf, Burt felt his heart start beating again when he felt a pulse beat in Blaine's neck.
"He's alive, but we need to warm him up," Burt sighed, Sam nodding beside him and redoubling effort to dig his friend out. Brushing off the last of the snow, Burt scooped Blaine into his arms and winced at how cold the boy felt, jogging back to the truck with Sam.
The two of them heaved Blaine onto the backbench with Finn. Sam climbed into the heated truck behind him and starting to peel off Blaine's black pea coat, letting Finn take care of wrapping the three blankets around Blaine's shivering body. Burt meanwhile made quick work of getting the snow away from the tires before throwing himself back into the front seat. He looked to in the mirror to find Finn and Sam with Blaine draped across the pair of them, covered in blankets and the two boys rubbing his arms and legs in an attempt to warm the youngest boy up. Turning the key in the ignition, Burt quickly turned the car around and started to drive back up the road trying to drive as swiftly and safely as he could to the hospital in Westerville.
"It's nearly a two hour drive, let alone walking it! What the hell was he thinking? In this weather too!" Burt paced back and forth, ripping the baseball cap from his head and scrunching it up in his hands. Sighing he collapsed into the hard plastic chair, wondering why Blaine hadn't simply called him to come and get him.
Nurse Linda smiled sadly, sinking into the chair beside Burt. "He had these on him," Pulling documents out of the pocket of her scrubs, she unfolded them to show Burt the important papers that confirmed Blaine to be an emancipated minor. "Legally he's on his own. I think that's been true for longer than these papers have been valid though. I was here when his Grandparents came to take him away the first time, and I don't believe that they ever had any intention of being there for their Grandson. I'd be surprised if they even fought his notion for emancipation."
Burt paled considerably, feeling slightly sick as he read over the words that did indeed declare Blaine to be on his own. "Wait, what do you mean when his Grandparents came to collect him? Where are Pam and Mac? They love that boy with everything they have, they'd never let Mac's parents take him away."
"Wait you don't know?" Linda questioned, her face puzzled and tinged with sorrow.
"Know what?"
"Blaine was in a serious car accident about six weeks ago. Sure he survived with minor grazes and a couple of broken fingers, but Mac and Cooper were killed instantly."
Burt rested his hands on his knees, trying not to keel over in shock. "What about Pam?"
Linda sighed once more, "She hung on for longer, about a two and a half weeks after the crash. Blaine came to see her religiously every single day. It's the only reason I know all of their names and so much about the family; he'd sit and talk to her for hours. He was usually on his own and I'm fairly certain he walked every time too. On that last day, Blaine had just taken hold of her hand when she crashed. We rushed her into surgery but there was massive internal bleeding and she died on the operating table. Blaine's Grandparents came for him again, about three hours after we called them, and the custody of Blaine became legally theirs as his only living relatives."
Burt felt his entire body go numb, memories of all the times they'd spent with the Anderson family over the last few years running through his mind. Mac had become one of his better friends, and whilst he found it odd not to hear from him for the last six weeks, he had never thought that it would be down to this. All he could think about now though was the three weeks the two families had spent in Florida together over the summer. Kurt and Blaine had been in their element surrounded by Disney and Harry Potter, not to mention Finn and Cooper with the extravagant buffet tables. The thought that they would never have a joint family holiday again, or even just see their friends again wracked Burt with a guilt and sorrow he couldn't deny. Standing up, he took a deep breath and pocketed the emancipation papers, determined to take Blaine home with them, and knowing that Carole would never let him back out of her sight if he even so much as tried to protest the move.
Linda smiled softly, feeling in her heart of hearts that Blaine was finally going home to the right family and walking in the opposite direction to start her rounds again.
"Hey Kiddo," Burt smiled, walking into the room to find Blaine awake, Sam and Finn perched on the edges of their chairs and watching him closely.
Blaine eyed him suspiciously and nodded towards him quickly before turning away again.
Burt sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed and tucking a finger under Blaine's chin to get the boy to look at him. "Blaine, Kiddo, why didn't you tell us? We would've been with you the whole time."
The teenager's eyes filled with tears, his body wracking with unshed sobs before the dam finally broke and he launched forwards, burying his face in Burt's neck and sobbing like the world was ending. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry for Blaine. Nothing at all," Burt gently rocked the two of them letting Blaine cry out the agony he had clearly been holding onto. "Do you want me to go and call Kurt? He can be here in a few hours."
Blaine let out a strangled whimper, his heartbeat monitor speeding up as he shook his head violently. "No, no please. Don't ruin New York for him."
"Kiddo, he's going to want to know."
"Don't tell Kurt. Please, please don't tell him. It will kill him. Let him live his dream. Leave him in New York," Blaine slurred, the painkillers finally kicking in and his eyes fluttering with the effort to keep them open.
Sam sat down gently on the other edge of the hospital bed, eyes flickering from Blaine to Burt to Finn and back to Blaine again, taking in his friends small, shivering frame wrapped in numerous blankets.
"Blaine he's going to…"
"Please," He whimpered, one weak hand lifting up to grip Sam's. Sam looked to Finn who shrugged sadly, standing up and reaching for Blaine's other hand, the boys head still tucked into Burt's neck.
"Okay, we won't I promise, but he'll find out eventually Blaine," Burt murmured, feeling Blaine's breaths even out as he fell asleep again.
Burt gently pushed Blaine back against the fluffed up pillows, letting Sam and Finn keep holding on to him as he stood back up. "Right, I need to go and get Carole because she's going out of her mind and I can't take my phone going off anymore. You boys take care of him and we'll be back here as soon as we can. I'm hoping it'll only be four hours at the most, but with the snow I have no idea."
"Burt!" Sam called, whipping round to look at the older man stood in the brightly lit doorway, "What about Vesper and Shadow? Blaine's Grandparents wouldn't let him take them with him to their house, not when they make him happy," Sam finished bitterly, turning quickly to Blaine then back to Burt.
Burt felt more pulling at his heartstrings, praying that Blaine hadn't lost the two of them as well as the rest of his family. "I'll run by the Anderson's old place and see if they're there. God knows Shadow alone would probably wait months for Blaine to return to him." Shaking his head, Burt searched his key chain for the one that would let him into the Anderson's house and marched down the corridor, determined to take Blaine's dog and cat back to the Hummel household to have a sense of normality for the boy when he was released from the hospital.
When Blaine next woke up he had to push Sam's head from his shoulder, grimacing when he felt the drool soaking through his hospital gown. Shoving Sam a little harder, he snorted when the boy fell to the floor with a yelp and a thud.
"Jesus, nice Blaine, glad you find this funny," Sam whined, picking himself up and sinking into the uncomfortable felt chair beside Blaine's bed with a huff.
Finn shook his head with a smile, eyes roaming over Blaine's face. "Blaine, erm earlier you were saying…"
"I don't want Kurt to know what happened Finn," Blaine said sharply, eyes staring into Finn's own. "I may have had painkillers and God knows what else in my system, but I meant what I said, don't you dare tell him."
Nodding, the taller boy sighed gently, moving to sit on Blaine's bed again. "If that's what you want you know we'll honour that Blaine, but he's going to find out."
"I'll deal with that when it happens," Blaine muttered, wriggling to get more comfortable on the bed. "If he turned away still after this, I don't know what I'd do."
"Kurt wouldn't hurt you Blaine, not if he knew this," Finn muttered quietly, watching Blaine shake his head vehemently.
"No," Blaine breathed, "My parents and Cooper all hurt me, not their fault I'm aware, but that's all love brings. Hurt. The Warblers were supposed to be my guys and look what happened there. Mike was supposed to be one of my best friends and I haven't heard from him since he left Lima. Kurt, even before everything that happened, was ignoring my calls or barely had the time for me. I'm sick of being hurt. My Grandparents were supposed to care for me, love me for who I am. Instead they were about to ship me off to military school somewhere in Texas." Blaine watched Sam and Finn with the most steady, determined expression they'd seen since Kurt had left Lima, a gaze that made both of them shudder in synch. "Nobody's ever going to hurt me again."