Disclaimer: No I still don't own Glee. I also do not own the characters of Criminal Minds. For any worried Gleeks, you don't need to know anything about CM to read this – they are just extra characters that I wanted to use rather than creating a whole new set of characters.
"I have some good news, but I'm afraid I also have some bad news." He said, looking back down to his clipboard.
"Good news." I heard myself say.
I jumped again as Quinn burst through the double doors.
"Oh, God! I've been looking for you guys everywhere." She walked over to us quickly, spotting the receptionist standing with us.
"What is it? Is there news? Is Finn ok?" She asked, her words tumbling out in a rush, her usually immaculate hair fluffed out around her face, her eyes rimmed with red where she – like I – had been crying.
He looked down at his chart again.
"Mr. Hudson is completely fine – apart from some burns on his torso and minor smoke inhalation. We'll keep him in tonight for observation just to make sure that there aren't any immediate complications but all being well he'll be able to leave tomorrow." He said, looking up at us.
Quinn nodded, heaving a sigh of relief and swiping one hand across her face as if to hide that moment of sheer vulnerability. An instantaneous, somewhat irrational, jealousy shot through me, scorching me like flames. She knew for sure. The love of her life was safe. I was still waiting on tenterhooks.
She looked up briefly.
"His mom? Carole Hummel-Hudson?" She asked, biting her lip. I knew she must be waiting for the news of her so she could leave and be with Finn when he woke up. Waking up alone after what their boys had been through would be terrifying. Worry shot through him again. How is he?
"She's essentially fine but there were some … complications. Because of her prolonged exposure to the flames she has severe smoke inhalation and she won't be leaving the hospital for some time – she still hasn't yet regained consciousness." He said, a somewhat apologetic look on his face.
"Prolonged?" Quinn asked, "I don't understand – she was pulled out of the fire first!"
"She was, but the fire was started in the dining room. She was making dinner for the family at the time, and she went to investigate the source of the smoke. She ended up trapped by the flames until the fire fighters got to her." He said.
Quinn nodded. "Can I go see him now?" She asked, though we all knew she would go and see him regardless of the receptionist's permission.
"Of course." He half smiled, "He's in the first room on the right in the private rooms ward."
Quinn thanked him and turned on her heel, rushing to get to his side so that she could be there for him to comfort him.
"Well, it was Kurt that you were worried about correct?" He asked and I felt a tiny, tiny glimmer of hope. He had just said good news, hadn't he? Although, it depends what you constitute as good news. Carole was alive but in a bad way – that wasn't necessarily "good news".
I nodded, swallowing forcefully.
"Well his injuries are the most severe out of the three of them – as you saw he has severe third degree burns to his entire right shin and foot. When he wakes up he'll certainly be in a wheelchair for a little while because of the damage done to his nerves - we can't tell how severe that damage is yet, or exactly how long he'll be in the hospital. He's currently unconscious because of the huge amount of pain medication that he's on, but you can go see him if you want to." The old man said, making a note of something on his clipboard.
"Wait, so he's alive?" I asked breathlessly, my knees suddenly going weak with relief, at the same time as Jesse said;
"What do you mean, 'the three of them'?"
My head snapped up. If Finn, Carole and Kurt were all recovering in the ICU … did that mean that…
"I'm so sorry, but Mr. Hummel-Hudson was very severely burnt, and after his heart attack last year, inhaling the amount of smoke that he did … it was a long shot that he would make it to the hospital. He died almost immediately upon entering surgery, and in the end there was nothing that the surgeons could do to save him." His words slowly sank in.
Kurt had lost his mother nine years ago – now he had to face the loss of his father. I ran one hand through my hair.
"Shit." I breathed.
"I'm truly sorry for your loss." The receptionist said. "Kurt is in the room next door to Finn's." And with that, he left.
I turned to look at Rachel and Jesse as a horrible silence filled the room.
I was barely aware of them following me as I turned away and left the harshly lit cafeteria, walking back through the ER and down the corridor labelled 'BURN ICU'. The door to Finn's room was shut, as was the door to Kurt's. I took a deep breath before pushing down the handle and walking inside, eyes closed. I opened my eyes as I let go of the breath and became acutely aware that my hands were shaking. I crossed the room and sat down next to Kurt, taking his hand immediately. He looked so small, so pale. It scared me more than it probably should - I'd never seen him look so fragile, so breakable. Not even that day he'd called me borderline hysterical from the McKinley Locker room -He kissed me Blaine he kissed me please help me I can't tell anyone I think he's going to kill me oh my god I can't breathe Blaine help help Blaine please help me- was scarier than this.
For some reason I found myself suddenly suppressing a chuckle despite the circumstances – he would hate the thought of having visitors when he wasn't properly dressed with his hair all done. I could hear a steady 'Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.' coming from a machine that he was hooked up to. His heartbeat. I wasn't sure if the noise made me feel better or worse.
"What's going to happen to Kurt now?" Rachel asked in a hushed voice.
"He'll stay with me at Dalton. My dorm building has a lift in it for his … wheelchair." I stuttered over the word, though I wasn't sure why. I was currently having difficulty picturing my Kurt, the boy who could never keep still for more than five minutes confined to a wheelchair for any length of time.
"What about school and stuff?" She asked and I felt a mild sense of irritation. Kurt was unconscious in hospital and she wanted to talk about his grades?
"We've got time to figure that out." Jesse said softly. I felt a rare sense of thankfulness towards Rachel's usually conceited boyfriend. "C'mon, Rach. We should go, give them some alone time." He said and I looked up, thanking him with my eyes.
Rachel nodded, standing up and taking Jesse's hand.
"I'm just a phone call away if you need me, ok?" She said and I responded with a quiet 'thanks.'
She leaned down and pressed a kiss to Kurt's forehead.
"We love you, Kurt. See you tomorrow." She whispered, before Jesse led her out of the room.
The silence that filled the car was strange. Jesse and I had huge personalities, we were the first to admit it. But tonight … tonight neither of us seemed to feel like talking. I softly shattered the quiet.
"It's horrible. I can't believe he's dead." I said, not sure which one of them I felt more sorry for – Carole had only just married him, she was supposed to be thinking about things like where they should go for their belated honeymoon, and who they should invite to their first wedding anniversary party, not choosing a casket for Burt to be buried in and which flowers he'd want on his grave. And Finn – Finn had only just discovered what it was like to have a fatherly figure, and now he'd been taken away. Or Kurt, just when he was going to need his Dad the most, he was gone – at least Finn still had Carole, now Kurt was, for lack of a better word, an orphan.
"I know." Jesse murmured, slowing the car as we swung into the driveway of my house. My Dads were away in New York on business for the next three weeks, and since I had the house to myself, Jesse was staying with me. He opened his door and rushed round to open mine. He took my hand and led me to the front door.
"I wish there was something more that we could do to help. I mean, Blaine's going to be pretty protective of him for a while, but still. I wish we could make him feel better." I mumbled as Jesse unlocked the front door and led me inside, flicking on the hall light and shutting the door behind us, sealing us away from the world in our own little bubble.
"We can't make him feel better about something he doesn't know about yet." Jesse pointed out, moving behind me to remove my Red coat. "He's in the safest place he could possibly be right about now. The doctors and nurses – and Blaine – will take good care of him." He reassured me, taking my hand once again and leading me up the staircase towards my room. I suddenly felt exhausted as I watched Jesse wander into my bathroom. I looked at the glowing red numbers on my alarm clock. 3:30AM. Wow, no wonder I was tired. I decided to leave my alarm on, knowing that I would still have to go to classes tomorrow. The world couldn't stop because of this, though it sure felt like it could. Jesse tugged off his grey T-shirt and his Black skinny jeans, climbing into bed in his boxers.
"Come to bed, baby. You look exhausted, you need to sleep." He said, flipping the duvet open invitingly. I nodded my head, walking into my bathroom to brush my teeth.
I jerked awake, squinting at the sunlight that streamed into the room, a loud knocking sound filling the air.
I stood up and walked to the door, pulling it open slightly so that I could see who was out there.
A tall, pale, lanky man and a tough-looking, bald man with dark skin were standing there, ID badges with the letters "F.B.I" on them. My shock must have displayed clearly on my face.
I opened the door wider, quickly glancing back at Kurt, who was still sleeping, the reassuring 'Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.' still coming from the machine that monitored all of his 'vitals' as the nurses called all of the numbers and lines on the screen.
"Hi. I'm Supervisory Special Agent Morgan and this is SSA Doctor Reid. Can we come in?" The Agent Morgan asked.
I nodded, reaching out my hand to accept his handshake.
"I'm Blaine Anderson." I said, moving back to sit beside Kurt.
"You been here all night, kid?" He asked me, looking confused and a little surprised.
I nodded, yawning.
"And you're his … brother?" Dr. Reid asked.
"Boyfriend," I corrected him, subconsciously taking Kurt's hand "We've been together for nearly two years."
Neither of them looked shocked.
I looked back to Kurt's face, shocked to realise that when I did, my gaze was met by his blue-gray eyes, and I was alarmed to see he had a large tear rolling down his right cheek.
"Kurt?" I asked, taking his hand in mine, "Baby, are you okay? Can you hear me?" I felt like I was back in the ambulance again.
He slowly opened his mouth.
"Blaine…" He whispered softly.
"I'm here. I'm here, Kurt." I leant closer, using my free hand to wipe away the escaped tear.
"Blaine, my leg." He croaked, the pain showing clearly on his face.
"I'll go and talk to the nurse." SSA Dr. Reid said quietly, leaving the two of us alone with Agent Morgan.
I felt tears in my eyes, hating the fact that after what he'd already been through, and the pain he was currently in, I had to break him further at some point. Eventually I would have to find the words to explain to him that his father hadn't made it.
"It's okay, I'm here, baby." I repeated, using my free hand to stroke his hair.
"Blaine what happened to my leg?" He asked again, his voice rough and scratchy.
"You got … a little burnt in the fire." I said, determined to protect him from the extent of the damage for as long as I could.
"Have you been here all night?" He asked, reaching up with his free hand to stroke my face, which I realised must be scratchy with stubble.
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.
Agent Reid walked back in with another nurse, this time a petite blonde woman. Her hair was pulled back in a severe bun, a style that contrasted hugely with her soft face and dainty features.
"How are you feeling, Mr. Hummel?" She asked pressing some buttons on the screen that Kurt's vitals were displayed on and jotting down some notes on her clipboard.
"Weak. Tired. And… hungry. Actually I'm starving." Kurt said. His stomach chose that moment to rumble loudly. I let a chuckle slip through my lips and Kurt glared at me playfully.
Suddenly his face was a mask of horror, his heart rate audibly rocketing.
I was instantly alarmed, my hands fluttering uselessly over him.
"What? What is it? Are you in pain?" I asked as he went from looking terrified to glaring at me angrily.
"Oh my God. Oh my God! Blaine Anderson what does my hair look like? If you've let a bunch of strangers in and I look like I've been dragged through a hedge backwards, I swear …"
I sighed with relief and couldn't help but grin, hearing the nurse and Agent Morgan chuckle behind us. I was relieved to hear Kurt saying these things – it gave me hope that things might just be okay.
"You look gorgeous, you always do." I said told him truthfully and a half smile tugged at his lips.
"Mirror. Comb. Now." He said seriously, and I mock saluted him.
"Aye Aye captain." I said, pulling a compact mirror and my own red comb out of my bag that I now always carried because of Kurt's not exactly infrequent drama queen moments.
He opened the mirror and his face returned to the mask of horror.
"Gorgeous? Holy … Blaine if this is what you mean when you tell me I look gorgeous, then consider me officially offended." He was about to start on a rant, and I knew it.
"You always look perfect to me. Even when you look like you've been dragged backwards through a hedge." I joked, quoting him. He smacked me on the arm with the comb, smiling.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but we really need to ask you some questions if you're feeling up to it." Agent Morgan said, uncrossing his arms.
I looked at Kurt who nodded, all traces of the joking smile gone from his face.
"Can you tell us what you remember about the start of the fire?" Agent Reid asked him. I moved so that I was sitting on the side of the bed. It was easier to put my arm around Kurt and comfort him from here. He leaned into my embrace, resting his head on my shoulder.
"I don't remember much." He muttered, avoiding eye contact with everyone.
"Anything that you know could be helpful to finding out who did this to your family." Agent Morgan supplied a sincere look on his face.
"So you're sure it wasn't an accident?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.
"It looks that way," Dr. Reid said, nodding apologetically, "but we're going to do everything we can to find out who did it."
There was a stretch of silence. I found myself yearning for the Agents and the nurse to be gone so that I could sit and talk to Kurt alone.
"She was screaming." He began. "She was screaming at us to help her, but none of us could get to her. It was boiling – so hot I couldn't breathe." He pulled me closer to him, and I resumed stroking his head, attempting to keep him calm as his heart rate increased once again.
His eyes flicked up to my face.
"Is she … is she okay?" He asked me urgently.
I nodded my head quickly.
"She's next door." I elaborated slightly, pointing my finger at the wall behind our heads, indicating that she was in the room to the right of his.
"I remember running upstairs to try and get Finn to help, but—"
The door crashed open and Kurt jumped, clutching my hand only to relax slightly as Rachel walked in, today dressed in a Blue skirt and grey coat with white ballet flats on and a now familiar manic gleam in her eyes.
"Hi Blaine. Kurt you're awake! How are you feeling? I thought I'd drop by before school and I didn't want to come empty handed so I brought you homemade cookies because I know how bad hospital food is." She paused her speedy rant to throw the nurse an apologetic glance. "Sorry, but it is. Oh! Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. I'm Rachel Berry, who are you?" She spoke so quickly I was sure that the two Agents wouldn't have understood a single word she said.
They introduced themselves again, managing to cover their surprise very well. She nodded, acknowledging their introductions before handing me the box of freshly baked cookies.
"Kurt, I'll bring you some visitors after school but right now I have to go because I'm already late and Mrs. Thomas is only so flexible with my schedule. I'll talk to you both later. Bye!" She called as she left the room.
I shook my head, chuckling with Kurt as I took the lid of off the box of cookies and offered one to him.
The room fell silent as I walked into Glee club.
The last few days had been filled with silences. I hated it.
"How is he?"
"Is he awake?"
"Will he wake up?"
"Is he okay?"
As soon as I opened my mouth to speak they fired questions at me like torpedoes.
I raised my hand to the anxious members of the New Directions, forcing myself to look away from the empty seats between Mercedes and myself, and between Puck and Mike. Of course Quinn's seat was also empty.
"I just saw them this morning. They're both awake. The nurses told me that although Kurt's leg is pretty bad, he should be fine. Quinn told me that Finn is being discharged later this morning, but he won't coming back to school for another couple of days." I supplied them with the knowledge that they were obviously craving.
They all nodded, none of them daring to ask about Kurt's leg.
I turned upon hearing a knock on the door behind me.
"Excuse me; I'm looking for Mr William Shuester?" A tall man wearing a dark suit and a red tie asked, a businesslike expression on his face.
"He's probably just finishing up with his Spanish class – he'll be here any minute." I said, eyeing the FBI badge pinned to his chest – as well as the matching ID badge sported by the dark haired, pale skinned woman beside him.
When I saw their questioning looks I supplied an answer.
"We're the McKinley High Glee club. You're here to ask him about Kurt and Finn, right? We could probably tell you just as much about them as he can." I heard murmurs of approval from the New Directions behind me.
The two people who I presumed to be working with Agents Morgan and Reid interviewing Kurt at the hospital walked into the room, standing beside me in front of the piano and facing the team.
"My name is Aaron Hotchner, and this is Emily Prentiss." He began, but Noah interrupted him, obviously having spotted the badges.
"Are you guys FBI Agents?" He asked.
"Yes. We work for the Behavioural Analysis Unit. We study the behaviour of the criminals who commit crimes in order to catch them." Agent Prentiss responded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Why are the FBI here?" Lauren asked cautiously. Everyone's faces now looked confused as well as worried.
"Because we don't think these fires are accidents. This is the second fire in the last month, and although it's the first time someone's been killed, it is not the first time that someone has been injured. We were called in because the local police have no leads and they believe we can help them."
Yet another horrible silence filled the room, everyone shooting scared, confused looks at each other.
Finally, Brittany spoke.
"I don't understand … who died?" She asked, twirling her blonde hair around her finger.
"Thank you for your time Mr. Hummel, we'll be in touch if we have any more questions." Agent Reid said as the two of them moved towards the door.
Agent Morgan paused at the door.
"We're sorry for your loss. If there's anything we can do to help, or if you remember anything else, please, don't hesitate to have the hospital contact us." He said, leaving before Kurt had the chance to respond. My heart plummeted as the agent's words rang in my ears.
We're sorry for your loss.
Your loss.
Kurt's eyes immediately found mine, panic and fear written all over his face.
"My loss?" He asked, tears shining in his eyes.
I took a deep breath and forced myself not to look away.
"As you already know, Carole is fine." I swallowed, taking another deep breath, no clue how to break Kurt's heart.
"Finn?" He asked, though I knew he was itching to ask about his Dad.
"Finn is …" I began, knowing that as soon as I told him that his brother was okay, he would know the answer already.
"Is?"
"… is fine. He was discharged this morning." I whispered.
He was silent, the horrible answer effectively revealing itself.
"So my loss is … my dad?" He asked me, disbelief and fear all over his face.
The sight just about broke my heart.
I nodded, not trusting my voice as tears immediately cascaded down his cheeks.
"How long have you known?" He asked me, his voice cracking and a world of accusations in his eyes.
I decided honesty was the best policy.
"They told me about all four of you at once."
"When were you going to tell me?" He half shrieked.
I didn't bother to comment that I wasn't going to tell him whilst the room was full of FBI agents – If it made him feel better to yell at me then he could scream until he was hoarse. I'd take every word.
"As soon as the agents were gone." I said honestly.
He must have believed me because his face crumpled and he wrapped his arms around me, clinging on for dear life.
"I … He can't be gone! He just can't be. I'll forgive you for making such a sick joke but only if you tell me the truth RIGHT NOW." He sobbed into my chest.
I bit my lip in an attempt to stop my voice from quivering. Kurt needed me to be strong for him right now.
"I really really wish I was joking. But I'm not. I'm so sorry, Kurt. I'm so sorry."
We sat for hours, holding onto each other whilst he cried, not falling asleep until we could feel the morning sun on our faces.
