Part 2

When I reached the street outside I gasped for breath, partly due to the air being a lot cooler than in the club and partly because I could barely get my lungs to work. What had I done? How could I have done it? The thought of Kurt sitting alone in his bed waiting for me kept running through my mind – his face as he wondered what I was doing, who I was with. What had I done.

Staggering down the road I found my car and fumbled around for my keys, but I knew I couldn't drive. I could barely stand. And I was pretty sure I was still drunk. Banging my hands against the bonnet I screamed out and then began attacking myself. What had possessed me to go out? Why had I thought it was a good idea? Why had I let Damien… I couldn't even bear to think of it. Hitting at my arms I cried out at the pain but kept on pounding my skin – trying to beat the cheater out of me and scratch the thoughts out of my head.

"Hey." Suddenly I heard a voice behind me and spun round to see a middle-aged man looking at me with concern. "Are you ok?"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" I shouted, my eyes wild. The man jumped backwards, his eyes widening. For a second I felt bad, but then I remembered why I was angry and started attacking myself again. The man shook his head and as he walked away I heard him mumble 'crazy' under his breath.


For a while I couldn't bring myself to return home. Kurt's face haunted me and I knew I wouldn't be able to keep the secret. He would know as soon as he saw me. Checking my phone I saw I had several missed calls from Carol and almost threw it against the wall, but managed to reign in a bit of sanity and slip it back in my pocket. When I finally made it back to our flat it was way past midnight – the street was dark and silent and I felt like collapsing.

As soon as I rang the doorbell I heard hurried footsteps. Carol wrenched it open and as soon as she saw me she gasped.

"Blaine!" Even the sound of my own name made me hate myself. Not saying anything I walked straight past, but she grabbed hold of my shoulder and stopped me from going any further.

"What happened? Did somebody beat you up?" She was concerned. Hah. If she knew what I'd just done to her son she would be the one beating me up.

"I can't…" My voice sounded alien – like I was now a different person. My throat was sore from shouting and I knew I looked terrible. "He…" Thankfully, being the understanding person she was, Carol nodded her head and immediately began packing up, leaving me to wander off out of the kitchen.


Opening the door into the hall I cursed myself for even coming home. I couldn't do it. I couldn't face Kurt. I could never look at him again. I was about to turn around and run out of the house when I tripped on the carpet and crashed into the wall.

"Ow!"

"Blaine?" I froze. I knew Kurt's voice just as well as he knew mine. Even this new alien me that even I didn't recognise. Shit. For a couple of seconds I froze, hoping he would think he was hearing things and leave it.

"Blaine?" Suddenly I heard the sound of rustling and knew he was trying to get up. No. I couldn't make him do that.

"Kurt!" Running into the room without contemplating it - my only thought was to keep him where he was. When I came face to face with him however, I crumbled. There he was. The man I loved. And I had betrayed him.

"Blaine!" At the sound of my name I fixed my eyes on my husband. He looked shocked, his eyes wide and his mouth open. I wondered for a second if he could read my mind, but then remembered my appearance and the state I was currently in.

"Oh my God Blaine what happened?" He went to get up again but I shouted out, making him freeze.

"No! Stay there!" I wasn't going to make him hurt any more than I already had. Staring at me with his eyes wide Kurt seemed upset – wanting to do more than he could.

"Baby come over here now." He said, defiance creeping into his tone. Another part of my soul broke in two.

"No." Turning away I banged my head against the wall, trying to stop the tears that were creeping in the corner of my eyes. I couldn't do this. I couldn't.

"Blaine, if you don't get over here right now I am getting up." I clenched my eyes shut, trying to block him out. Then I heard shuffling and a cry of pain.

Within two seconds I was on the bed, pulling Kurt up towards me as he gripped the leg that was seizing. I buried my head in his shoulder and hugged him tightly until he stopped moving, until the sounds of pain faded away. It was the automatic response I always had – I did it without even thinking. But now I was here and I cursed myself for reacting.

"Blaine." Kurt seemed happy I was finally over, moving his hand away from his leg to reach up and brush my hair. "What the hell happened? You look like someone attacked you." He tried to bring my head up but I kept it buried in his shoulder, not wanting to look in his eyes. As I felt his lips gently kiss my ear, his fingers now moving in soothing motions, I began to shake with hatred for myself.

"Hey, why do you smell of cigarettes?" Suddenly something seemed to twig – Kurt's tone changed into confusion and I grit my teeth together. "And alcohol. Have you been drinking? Where have you been?" His hands reached to pull my face up and I fought against him, but eventually despite his inferior strength I just gave up, letting my chin hang limply in his hands.

"Blaine?" As those crystal blue eyes stared back at me I knew what I was about to say would probably be the worst thing I would ever do.

"Kurt I'm sorry." As the words spilled out so did the tears, unable to contain themselves any more. I cried loud and hard, digging my face back into Kurt even though that was the last thing I wanted to do. Immediately I felt hands claw at my cheeks again and the tears blurred my vision of his face.

"What? What are you sorry for? Don't talk like this baby you're scaring me." The worry in his voice made me cry harder, as did his fingers desperately trying to wipe away my tears.

"KURT!" Shouting out my boyfriend jumped away from me again, still keeping his hands close but his head leaning back as if I was trying to bite it off. Angrily I scrubbed at my own face, trying to stop the sobs that were shaking my chest, "You're gonna hate me."

"No! No of course not, I could never hate you!" He reached out yet again but I batted him away – the movement violent so he let out a short cry of surprise.

"You're not listening!" Finally he was silent, dropping his hands down and just looking at me.

"Tell me then." I gulped. Taking another deep breath I began.


"It was all too much. This." I motioned between the two of us, trying not to make eye contact and see his reaction. "So I went out. And I met a guy." I grit my teeth at the sound of the words – feeling almost as betrayed by myself as Kurt would. My boyfriend seemed to react quietly, breathing in sharply.

"Someone you'd met before?" He asked, his voice shaky. I shook my head.

"No. Just some random."

"Wh…what happened?" This was the question I had been dreading. Kurt already knew the answer – I don't know why he hadn't slapped me already.

"We had sex." Figuring this would be the right time to leave I went to get up, but suddenly felt a hand grip at my shirt. Turning around I expected to see eyes filled with hurt, anger, hatred. I saw none of that.

"You had sex?" Kurt was shocked, yes, but there was something else. "What kind of sex?"

"You want to know the details?" Something that almost sounded like a laugh spilled from my mouth. My mouth was filled with bile.

"Well yes, it's important." What? It didn't matter at all. Cheating was cheating however you did it.

"He sucked me off. Nothing else. That satisfy you?" Raising my hands in the air I tried to fathom why Kurt wasn't crying – why he hadn't ordered me out of the house, never to return again. My boyfriend looked at me silently.

"Well, I suppose that's not too bad…" The words were so mumbled I almost didn't hear them. But I did.

"WHAT?" I exclaimed so loud that he jumped, sending another jolt of self-hatred through me. "I cheated on you Kurt! Why are you ok with this?" This had to be some kind of shock tactic. Any minute now he would see red. I was probably setting myself up for a fall…

"Of course I'm not ok with it. It hurts like hell." Kurt replied plainly, looking me in the eye, but still not showing any anger. "But it was bound to happen sometime."


WHAT.

This was ridiculous. I had just admitted to cheating on my boyfriend – having sex with another guy. And I was the only one that was mad about it.

"What?" Now stepping closer out of sheer disbelief my knees touched the edge of the bed. I couldn't believe it. Kurt now seemed to be upset, but not for the reason he should have been.

"Well look at me. I'm not exactly a hive of activity." He said, motioning to himself and smiling bitterly. "And we haven't had sex in a while. You have…needs." Now unable to stop the incredulous sounds from spilling out of my mouth I sat back down on the bed, not knowing how to act.

"Kurt. That is the single most stupid thing I have ever heard you say." Now I was angry – angry that he was even thinking like this. That I'd made him think like this.

"What? It's true. Love can't hold you here forever." No. No I was not having this.

"Kurt." Reaching over I cupped a hand to his chin, pulling him so he looked at me. I knew I had no right to do this, or even touch him, but I wanted to. "Don't you dare say that. I will never leave you."

"But I'll leave you."


The words stabbed me right in the heart. I let out a gutteral sob and Kurt's eyes began to fill with tears too.

"No…" I said, shaking my head rapidly, pulling Kurt closer so I could wrap my arms around him. "No. You're never leaving. You're never going away." Digging my nose into is hair I heard Kurt begin to cry into my chest – due to my actions finally catching up with him or something else I didn't know. Feeling my own tears pricking again in my eyes I rocked him from side to side, my breaths coming out ragged and shaky. I loved him so much. Everything about him – the way he smelt, the clothes he wore, the way his mouth curved up into a blissful smile every time we kissed. I loved him more than anything in the world.


For a while we just stayed like that – both of us crying but neither of us doing anything to stop it. It was like we needed to get it all out, together but separate. When Kurt finally quietened down I could tell he was weak – what little strength he had completely sapped out by the emotion he had just displayed.

"Hey." I whispered, as he snuggled into me, his nose poking through my shirt so I felt his breath on my skin. "Let me read you a story." It was something we'd done for years – every time Kurt got upset or tired, I'd read to him until he fell asleep. Not waiting for a response I leant over and fumbled around the bedside table for a book. Kurt groaned at me moving away and clawed at my shirt, but I was back soon, moving us both down so we were lying together on the bed.

"Right, listen carefully, you'll remember this one." I shook the book open with one hand and used a finger to turn to the correct page.

"Once upon a time there was a princess called Penelope-"

"-Kurt." A faint voice whispered. I stopped reading to look down at him.

"What?"

"The princess is called Kurt." Smiling I kissed the top of his head, taking a second to breathe in his familiar scent before continuing.

"Ok, once upon a time there was a princess called Kurt. He lived in a grand castle in the centre of the kingdom with his mother and father Queen and King. Kurt was happy. But he was searching for one thing to make his life complete."

"His Prince Charming." A single tear rolled down my face. It travelled right to the end of my chin, pooling there before neatly dropping down onto Kurt's ear. I carried on reading until he fell asleep, and long after, until I couldn't read any more and closed my eyes.


Man I felt like crap.

As I opened my eyes I was immediately hit with a pounding headache that felt like knives being stabbed into my skull. My hand flew up immediately to press against my temple but in doing so I knocked over the book that had been balanced on my thigh, sending it tumbling to the ground with a loud crash. The sound make my head jar so I yelped out in pain, before remembering where I was and looking down at Kurt beside me. He was still asleep – his eyes closed and a blissful smile on his face that made me smile back. I knew what had happened last night wouldn't go away, but I was happy just to be waking up beside him and not on the floor of someone's living room.

"Morning." I whispered, surprised the other loud noises hadn't woken him up already. I nudged my nose against his cheek but still he didn't move. Wow, he must be having a good dream.

"Kuuuuuurt." I said with a smile, making my voice dance. "Time to get up!" Finally I decided to go for the big guns and moved my head in to kiss him on the lips. It was my favourite way to be woken up and I knew he liked it too. As our mouths pressed together I exhaled, the familiar taste sending me crazy, but Kurt didn't respond.

"Kurt?" Something was wrong. Reaching out my hand to shake his shoulder I was suddenly met with a realisation that chilled me to the bone. His skin was cold.

"Kurt!" Immediately I jumped up. Kurt stayed motionless on the bed, his body jumping up and down with my movements but his face still fixed in the same position. Oh God.

"Kurt!" Now beginning to panic I fumbled around for my phone, pressing speed dial on the number I'd always had saved, but had never wanted to use.

"Is this the ambulance? My husband's unconscious! I need an ambulance NOW!" As the operator asked me questions I shook Kurt again, desperately trying to wake him up.

"He's not moving! He has Huntingtons! Oh my God!" My heart was pounding, the blood rushing to my head so I felt dizzy and sick. I now wasn't listening to what the operator was saying, staring at Kurt's closed eyes and fumbling my fingers against them, trying to get them to open.

"Kurt! Kurt!" I looked at his mouth and saw it was partially open. I couldn't see if his chest was moving so put my ear to it and screamed when I heard nothing.

"KURT!" Jamming my lips to his I breathed out as hard as I could, trying to get as much air into his lungs as possible before then moving to beat at his chest, pushing down and down again to get his heart working. No. This wasn't happening – I couldn't lose him. Kurt. Kurt…

"KURT!"


The hospital felt like a morgue. Everything was cold – from the air temperature to the metal chairs and the soulless white tiles that seemed to be everywhere. I was surprised anybody's lives got saved in this misery hole. Looking down at myself I realised I still looked a mess. My hair was matted and I probably still stunk of alcohol. Oh God. Next to me on the table were a load of pamphlets about testicular cancer. I picked one up and stared blankly at the words, not really reading them. People with cancer had to learn how to deal with the inevitable. That their days were numbered and they had to savour each day like it was their last. This couldn't be Kurt's last.

Suddenly the door next to me crashed open. I jumped and dropped the pamphlet, sending if drifting down slowly towards the tiled floor. My eyes didn't look up but I heard the familiar voice of Burt and then titled my head to see him.

"Blaine!" Rushing over he held out his arms but I stayed sitting. My whole body felt numb and moving just wasn't an option. He still hugged me anyway, pulling me close and pressing his nose into my neck.

"Blaine we came as soon as we heard! What's happened?" I tried to open my mouth to speak, but my lips were dry and my throat didn't seem to want to work anyway. Carole came over and sat down beside me, resting a hand on my shoulder.

"Blaine, what happened last night?" She asked me softly. For a second I just stared blankly forward, unable to comprehend the situation I was in. Then the tears began to roll down my face.

"Oh Blaine." Now I had another face against mine, compassionate arms wrapped round me and muttering words of comfort in my ear. I didn't deserve them. Kurt could be dead. He probably was dead. We had no idea. The last thing I had done to him was betray him.


"Mr Hummel?" A voice rang out and all of us looked up, our heads moving in a jerky motion. The nurse stared at us and for a second I didn't know which Mr Hummel she was referring to – Burt or me. As I wasn't able to talk though Kurt's dad took charge and stood up.

"Yes?" The nurse sighed.

"We managed to stabilise him. He's very weak, and we almost lost him earlier – but he's alive." The words sent a new jolt of life through me. Jumping to my feet I almost knocked Carol over, but didn't look back to see if she was ok.

"That's…that's brilliant." Burt seemed happy too, his tone now sounding joyful. He had tears in his eyes, but they were ones of happiness. Turning round he looked at me, my eyes wide with shock and sheer liberation and threw his arms around my shoulders, sobbing with relief.

"Our son's ok…" He said into my shoulder. Slowly I moved my arms up from my sides to touch his back, still kind of dazed. The nurse looked at me knowingly and smiled.

"I think you saved his life." She said plainly, before going back through the door and leaving us all to celebrate.


Despite Kurt being stable it was a while before we were allowed to visit him. Once I regained the use of my legs I used them to pace endlessly up and down the halls, to the point where Carol forced me to go get a coffee for her so I wouldn't be in her peripheral vision. When the signal was given for us to go in I practically leapt through the door.

He still looked weak. More weak than I had ever seen him. His face held half the colour it normally did and his whole body seemed to have shrunken – like he had aged twenty years in the space of an evening. Carol and Burt gasped upon seeing him, rushing forward to his bedside like pilgrims, but I stayed silent. Once Kurt realised people were in the room his eyes fluttered open and he titled his head slightly to the direction of the noise. Burt and Carole immediately responded, pressing kisses to his face and squeezing his hand tightly. I wanted to do those things but figured it was better to let them have a family moment. They after all, had no reason to feel guilty.

"Bl…Bl…" Kurt tried to say something but he couldn't get the words out – his voice was so weak it made my heart ache.

"What darling?" Carole asked, moving her ear right to his lips, her expression earnest.

"Blaine…" Immediately both parents looked at me.

"Yes Kurt, Blaine's here." Burt said, signalling for me to come over. I planted my feet slowly across the floor until I reached the bed, dropping to my knees and placing my hand gingerly on the bed so I touched his leg over the covers. Kurt immediately responded, trying to move his head but straining.

"No darling, don't strain yourself." Carole fussed, brushing back his hair with her fingers and exposing a sweaty pale forehead. "Sssh, just stay still." I agreed with her sentiment but Kurt ignored it, trying to say my name again until eventually Carole gave up and looked at me.

"You try." Moving back towards Burt she left a path for me and I shuffled over until I was right next to Kurt. He seemed to sense me and his whole body shifted up, like he was trying to hold up his arms for a hug. I lifted my hand and placed it gently on his cheek, making him sigh and the first smile I had seen in a long time spread across his face.

"Blaine…" Oh God. All I wanted to do was break down. The nurses and doctors thought I was a hero, but I was probably what had caused this in the first place. Kurt was so weak and fragile I could barely stand to look at him, but at the same time I never wanted to leave his side.

"He seems to have forgiven you." Carole suddenly said. My head jerked around, confusion written across my features, but she simply nodded. For a second I wondered how she knew, but then realised she had probably figured it out herself. Turning back to Kurt I held back the tears that were threatening to brew and leant forward to kiss him softly on the forehead.

"I love you." I whispered – almost too quietly for anyone to hear. Kurt smiled and all of a sudden I felt his hand move to grasp and my shirt, the fingers not holding enough strength to properly grip it. I laced my fingers with his and he sighed, before his eyes closed again.


After that we were ushered out of the room. I almost decided to fight against the nurse but knew that would only cause all of us more problems in the future. I could tell Kurt was also distressed to see us go but knew he needed to rest. Now that everything seemed to be ok Burt suggested we all go home, but I wasn't having any of it.

"No." I said defiantly, planting my feet firmly on the ground as if he was going to try and drag me. "I'm not leaving."

"Blaine, you look terrible." Carole said honestly, walking over and cupping my face in her hands. "You need some rest."

"No I don't." I replied, still defiant but my emotions beginning to take over. "Kurt needs to rest. Not me."

"You shouldn't feel guilty." She whispered, now fixing her eyes on mine and staring into them. "You did what you had to do." At this I scoffed. Burt took this as rudeness and pulled Carole away, shooting me a glance which I didn't respond to.

"Come on." He said briskly to her. "If Blaine wants to stay here he can. He's an adult." As I watched them go my body began to feel numb again, so I shook my limbs and went to stand by the window to Kurt's room. I couldn't see inside, but just staring at the blurred glass and knowing he was inside was enough.

I stayed like that for a long time, not eating, not sleeping, not really paying any attention to what was going on around me. It was only when a nurse tapped me on the shoulder that I jerked back to life.

"Mr Hummel?" She asked me. I nodded, feeling a little light-headed from the sudden change of scene.

"Your husband has requested you speak with him." The words took a while to get through, but when they did my eyes widened.

"Yes, of course." I responded, allowing her to show me into the room.


When I re-entered the room Kurt still looked to be in the same weak state. The nurses had attempted to prop him up with a pillow but it only made his head loll to the side so he looked like he was falling asleep. When the sound of my voice talking to the nurse reached his ears his eyes fluttered open again and he smiled, making me half smile back.

"Here he is." The nurse said cheerily, signalling that it was ok for me to go forward and closing the door behind me.

Once we were completely alone I walked forward to the bed in three big strides, pulling up a chair and sitting down beside him. Kurt's hand instinctively reached up and I closed the rest of the distance, pulling it towards me and cradling it gently.

"Hi." I said, not really knowing what else to say. Kurt smiled and I swear he laughed too. It didn't really sound like a proper laugh, more a strangled one, but it was a laugh all the same.

"Hi." He replied, the difference in our voices astonishing.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, even though I knew it was and even more stupid thing to say than the first word. Kurt smiled again.

"Like I almost died." How could he be like this? How was he joking when he could barely support his own head? I laughed at the sheer ridiculousness and squeezed his hand tighter, wishing more than anything that I could feel his fingers gripping tightly back.

"The nurses say you saved my life." Kurt continued, now becoming slightly more serious. I sighed, not liking the hero comparison. Instead of replying I brought his hand up to my lips and kissed it.

"You shouldn't have." My whole body froze. I almost dropped his hand, but managed to keep hold of it.

"What?" For a second I wondered if I'd misheard it – Kurt's expression didn't seem to have changed and he didn't seem upset. I shuffled closer. "What?"

"You shouldn't have saved me." Oh God. He had said it.

"Kurt no, don't say that." Brushing back his hair I kissed his forehead again, trying to forget the words had ever been spoken, my eyes briefly squeezing shut. My husband used all of his strength to bring his other hand up to my face, and when he touched it I felt like I was being brushed by a feather.

"I need to say it." He said softly, trying to push my chin so I looked him in the eye.

"No you don't!" I went to protest but he suddenly shushed me, now bringing his finger to rest gently on my lips.

"I've been waiting for this moment for a long time." He continued, ignoring my look of desperation. "It's been close for a while."

"What moment?" Again I interrupted and again Kurt shushed me silent.

"Let me speak. I'm ill. Very ill. I'm not getting any better. At some point, I have to die." The stabbing pain entered my heart again and I almost bent over, but held myself together for him. "I knew it was coming but I didn't want to. For you." Moving his hand away from my lips he ghosted across my face and I sighed. "I knew how much it would hurt you to see me go, and I couldn't bear the thought of causing you that much pain. So I waited. I waited until a point where I knew you would be ok without me." Now realisation started to creep through me. I scoffed, my eyes squeezing shut as I shook my head and almost let go of Kurt's hand. So this was about last night.

"Blaine, don't get upset." Kurt said, his tone sounding worried. I bit my lip to stop the tears that were threatening.

"How can you even say that? That I would ever be ok without you?" My voice was shaking, half with sadness and half with anger. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"Baby I know. I know you love me. I love you too. But I needed to know you could find someone else attractive, that you could have fun, without me being there…" I shook my head more violently.

"No…no!"

"And you found that guy…that you were with. You found him attractive?" I hated myself. Kurt was right – I had found him attractive. So attractive I'd had sex with him. Why the thought had ever crossed my mind I would never know. But it had happened. There was no denying it. My silence made Kurt nod and I began to cry, unable to hold in my emotions anymore.

"So what? This has all been a test?" I thought back to the argument we'd had before I'd left – had that all been a set up? Had Kurt wanted me to go out and cheat?

"Not really." Kurt mused, his expression now pensive whilst I freaked out beside him. "But I was always watching." I gripped hold of his hand tighter, making him turn to look at me, his blue eyes boring into me like lazers.

"Is this it then? Are you just going to let yourself die because I let one freakin guy give me a blowjob?" My vision was blurred so I hastily wiped my face with my other hand. Kurt reached up to brush away one rogue tear and sighed.

"Do you remember when we got married Blaine?" He asked. I nodded, remembering the day well. It had only been a quiet affair – barely anyone had known about it. I'd wanted to tie myself to Kurt – to show him that no matter how bad his illness got I was never leaving him. And it made me his legal guardian when he became unable to make decisions for himself.

"You remember you said you would be there for me through anything, not matter how bad it got?" Crying harder I nodded again, squeezing his hand tightly. "This is me doing the same. I'm helping you get on with your life – without anyone holding you back."

"No!" Now I leant forward and buried my head into Kurt's shoulder, not really caring that I got poked by several wires and clips.

"You are such an amazing person Blaine." Kurt continued, faintly stroking my hair. "You need someone that can love you the way you love them, go out for walks in the park, play footsie at dinner, have sex in the toilets of a club. You need to live Blaine. And I need to die." My heart ached with the sobs I was producing, every inch of my body screaming out in anguish. I wanted to squeeze Kurt tightly to me and never let him go but I knew he was already too weak. My fingers clawed at his frail chest and I howled his name.

"Tell Dad and Carole," he continued, his voice still amazingly calm despite my freakout, "that I love them. I love them so much. Tell Finn he's been the best brother I could ever wish for. And tell everyone else...that I'll miss them." No. This wasn't happening. No...


"Blaine…" For a while I didn't look up, ignoring my husband's calls, until I suddenly felt hands on my face and dragged my eyes level with his. Kurt looked up at me, smiling, the love in his expression still clearly visible despite all the illness and tiredness.

"I want to read you a story." Sniffing in confusion I sat up, but Kurt moved his body over slightly and motioned for me to lie next to him on the bed. I obliged, snuggling up to him as close as I could and resting my nose against the crook of his neck. It was an awkward position, half of my body not even properly on the bed, but I didn't care. Somehow it just felt right,

"Right…" Kurt said once I was settled, a small smile creeping across his lips. "Listen carefully, I think you might know this one." He sighed, moving down slowly so we were both lying together and he could stare into my eyes. "Once upon a time, there was a princess…"

"Called Kurt." I filled in, giggling. Kurt chuckled back.

"No, not Kurt this time. Blaine." He moved his face in closer to press a soft kiss to my lips. His movements seemed to be getting weaker and I frowned, pulling him in closer so he didn't have to struggle. "

"Blaine lived in a grand castle in the centre of the kingdom with his mother and father Queen and King." Kurt continued, now talking with our mouths barely an inch apart. "He was happy. But he was searching for…" Suddenly he faltered. His throat gasped for breath and my hand flew to the side of his face.

"Kurt?" He tried to smile and I kissed his nose. "One thing. He was searching for one thing to make his life complete…"

"Yes…" Kurt said after a second or two, sighing as I stroked his cheek. "Searching for his Prince Charming..." His eyes fell shut and for a second I smiled, wondering if tiredness had taken over and he'd fallen asleep. Then I heard a sharp intake of breath and complete silence. Kurt's body relaxed against mine.


"No!" Feeling the same emotions I'd felt this morning my hands scrambled to shake him, panic rising in my voice instantly. Kurt didn't respond and I screamed, immediately alerting two nurses who came rushing into the room.

"DO SOMETHING!" I shrieked at them when they stared at me, still hopelessly shaking Kurt's body. Looking back over I attached my lips to his again to try and resuscitate him the way I had before, but somehow this time seemed different. Kurt wasn't going to come back. As the nurses came over they tried to pull me away but I fought them off, collapsing on top of my husband and clinging to him for dear life, tears streaming down my face and dripping down onto his pale, lifeless skin.

"Kurt!" I howled. "Kurt…" This was it. After years of loving each other, working through the struggles and making the best of what we had, Kurt was gone. He was in a better place. But he was never coming back.