Chapter 7
Kurt was never going to make it across the bridge! He made sure he chose the south walkway, closest to the Brooklyn Bridge because that's the side that he and Blaine always chose when they walked together. The views were spectacular. Right now the view was blocked by 40,000 people and a buttload of soot. What was going on?
He elbowed his way against the masses of people headed towards the Manhattan side of the bridge. At one point he was fairly certain he was moving backwards from how the crowd was pushing against him. This was a losing proposition and he was getting more frustrated by the minute. He needed to get to Brooklyn and to Blaine.
Suddenly, he was wet and not sure why. He had ducked his head down under the hood of his sweatshirt and was using it to navigate through the crowd. When he looked up, he saw a giant flaming object hit the span on the far side of the bridge. There was screaming and crying and no chance he was going to be able to go in the opposite direction from the crowd. He was almost plowed over from the pedestrians rushing forward off the bridge to escape the fire.
Dammit! He was so close to being on the right side of the bridge. He turned around and headed back in the direction he had come from, just like everyone else. Now that the Manhattan Bridge was not an option, he needed to collect himself and come up with Plan B. Once he was off the walkway and back on the sidewalk, he headed south along the waterfront in the direction of the Brooklyn Bridge. Maybe that would be a better option. As he neared the dock, he looked up at the mess that was the Manhattan Bridge. There was a gaping hole in the deck and cars were falling into the East River. The cars that were still on the bridge were on fire and people were running everywhere.
The whole scene was surreal, like he was trapped in some bad disaster movie, because isn't that where they all took place- New York City? He closed his eyes and steeled his nerves. He needed to keep moving and figure this out. The sky continued to spew out pieces of flaming space shrapnel, which was landing in the river, on the bridge and crashing through nearby buildings. It was a war zone in lower Manhattan. Wondering if it were like this everywhere, or just this region, he took out his phone again to check for a signal. As he suspected, there was still no service, so he pocketed it and kept walking towards the Brooklyn Bridge.
As Kurt rounded the corner and the bridge came into view, he gasped! "Holy cow! I was not expecting that!" he said to himself.
The iconic towers of the Brooklyn Bridge were destroyed, the bricks tumbling down, and the American flag at the top of the east tower- on fire. He wanted to cry. He wanted to sit right down on the sidewalk and just bawl his eyes out. That bridge was his last hope. What if Blaine was trapped in Brooklyn? How was he going to get to him or get him out?
Maybe Blaine made it over one of the bridges before they were destroyed. Maybe he was headed to Times Square to get Nick and Jeff. If he wasn't, there was no way he could get to Manhattan now. Kurt wasn't sure how he'd get to Brooklyn at this point, and what if he found some way and it turned out Blaine had made it to Manhattan? Maybe Blaine headed towards Staten Island once he saw the bridges were out. There were too many possibilities and it was making his head hurt even more.
It was late enough that it was dark out except for the light from fires on the bridge and surrounding buildings in the area. The bright star in the sky still hung ominously overhead, threatening to rain down more terror on the city. He needed to get some shelter for the night and he knew that staying in the lower part of the city was not a good idea. All of the disaster preparedness posters warned against it. That was the area that was lowest in elevation and flooded first. He chuckled at the fact that he had read the whole poster. It was a long ride home from work some nights and it was either read that or stare into the tired faces of his fellow commuters.
Blaine had told him to stay safe and that he'd see him for dinner that night. It was weird to think that had just been that morning. Kurt had made them both breakfast, and they had sat at the table together, just enjoying being with each other. The quiet time together in the morning was his favorite. He just sat and noticed all the little things about Blaine- his eyes reflecting the light coming in through the window, the way his strong hands gripped his coffee mug as he sipped it, and the little smile that formed on his lips when he realized Kurt was looking at him. It made his heart melt. He couldn't believe he was lucky enough to have found Blaine, especially after all those years of believing he'd never find someone who would love him.
Before they headed out of the house, Blaine had slid Kurt's messenger bag strap up his arm, slipped an arm around his waist, and pulled Kurt to him for a mind blowing kiss. It was one of those kisses that started off sweet and innocent, but then Blaine had slowly raised his hand to Kurt's face, and then deepened the kiss until it had left Kurt breathless. Kurt had needed a minute to adjust himself so that he could walk out the door and into public.
Now, he didn't want to think that it may have been their last kiss ever. He would see Blaine again. He just needed a better plan. He thought back again to what Blaine had said, "Stay safe and I'll see you for dinner." He could start with staying safe and the best way to do that was to find some shelter.
Kurt decided at that point it was best that he head towards Time Square to see if he could find somewhere to stay. Last year during the hurricane, they had public shelters set up there. Even if they weren't up and running yet, he might be able to find food at one of the hundreds of restaurants in the 10 block area. Hopefully, Nick and Jeff stayed up there too and he'd be able to find them.
Feeling renewed now that he had a better plan, he hiked the strap of his messenger bag further up his shoulder, turned around and headed north. He needed to pick a street closer to the east side of the city since he was fairly certain everyone would be flocking west towards the bridges and tunnels and he couldn't handle trying to go the opposite direction from the rest of New York.
As he walked along, he spun the ring on his left ring finger. He wasn't used to wearing it and had gotten into the habit of fiddling with it when he was stressed. At that moment, it was having a calming effect on him, grounding him, and reminding him of Blaine. He allowed himself a moment to let his mind wander back to a few days ago. They had been silently floating along in a hot air balloon over a quiet serene valley when Blaine took his hand and slipped the ring on his finger. It had been so understated and perfect.
He hadn't known where they were going that night and he really didn't think that Blaine had been at the point where he was ready to propose, so when he heard Blaine whisper, "Marry me?" in his ear, he almost couldn't breathe. His brain had stopped functioning for a second. Thankfully, Kurt's voice had still worked and he was able to answer him. Of course he wanted to marry him. Even when they were broken up and living in different states, Kurt couldn't stop thinking about Blaine. Blaine was his future. Now, he just had to hope there would be a future.
Kurt refused to believe the world would end before they had a chance to get married. It couldn't happen. He had been planning the wedding before he even met the man he would marry. 15 some odd years of planning would not go to waste because of some asteroid!
The street he was on now was less crowded and seemed to be less impacted than the section he had left south of him. There weren't as many fires and the air was less clogged with ash and smoke. He came upon a 7-11 convenience store and, amazingly enough, it was open. Walking inside and unsure of what he would find, he discovered a completely normal looking store, fully stocked, and the cashier still behind the counter.
Even though it was very strange to see someone stick to their post in a natural disaster, Kurt was grateful to see her and set about gathering some supplies. As he was going through the shelves picking out food and beverages to get him through the next few days, it dawned on him that the credit card machine was most likely not working. He would need cash. After looking in his wallet, he breathed a sigh of relief. He had some cash on him from when he and Blaine were trying to win lottery tickets to a Broadway show last week. If your name was called, you needed to pay for the tickets in cash. They hadn't won, so he still had the money. He was suddenly no longer disappointed about missing out on the show.
He brought his provisions to the counter and the cashier rung him up, giving him a 25% "disaster" discount. Kurt was pretty sure she had just made that up, but laughed, paid her for the supplies and shoved them into his messenger back. He cracked open one of the water bottles he bought once he got outside and drank down half of it right away. His throat was so dry from breathing in all the crap in the air and the water made him feel a bit human again.
Up ahead, he could see the iconic top of the Empire State building and was glad to see that it hadn't sustained any noticeable damage. There was something about seeing your major landmarks still standing that gave you some comfort. He didn't care so much if one of the thousands of parking garages in the city was crumbling from a direct hit.
Thankfully, Kurt had chosen wisely and the east side of the city was pretty cleared out. So he jumped even more when he heard, "KURT!"
"Huh? What?" he said, startled as he looked around, wildly.
"Over here, buddy!" came the voice. It wasn't Blaine's voice and his heart sank.
He looked around until he saw a hand waving to him from a nearby parking garage entrance. That wasn't shady at all.
"Who is it?" he said with trepidation in his voice.
"It's Chuck, from Theater History class."
Ah, okay. Deciding he was harmless, Kurt approached the entrance and ducked inside. Chuck was in his Monday/Wednesday afternoon class with him and Blaine. He sat in the front, always raised his hand and came off as a bit of an overachiever. Kurt wanted to smack him some days when he reminded the professor that they hadn't gone over a reading that was assigned or that "according to the syllabus, we should be doing a project soon". That was their last class of the day and all Kurt wanted to do was get home so he and Blaine could cook dinner and snuggle on the couch while watching TV.
"Where are you headed, man?" Chuck asked.
Kurt considered it for a moment and wondered if he should divulge his plan. Then he laughed at himself thinking that heading to Times Square to look for some friends was not top secret plans by any means. So he said, "Times Square. We had some friends in from out of town and that's the last place they would have been before this, whatever it is, hit."
"Spacecraft pieces."
Kurt gave Chuck a strange look, "Spacecraft pieces what?"
"That's what this is. Falling from the sky and destroying our city. Spacecraft pieces." He said it so coolly and logically as if Kurt should know that information.
"How do you know that? Is your phone working? Can I use it to call Blaine?" Kurt was excited for a minute thinking that maybe Chuck's phone was getting service and he could get a hold of Blaine.
"What? No. The phones won't work. The satellites were mostly taken out by the shrapnel and what little are left have been shifted over to be dedicated to government and military use. I know what's going on because I have an emergency weather radio and they've been broadcasting updates." Chuck produced the radio and gave it a few cranks on the handle to help keep it charged. It was one of the emergency radios that didn't need a power supply from batteries or electricity because it ran on the energy created by the user cranking a handle on the side of the radio.
Kurt was anxious to find Blaine and the guys, but Chuck had information and he felt like that might be helpful if he stopped and got the full story on what was going on in the world. So even though he wanted to end this weird conversation and be on his way, he proceeded to ask more questions of Chuck.
"So tell me what you have heard so far. All I know is that crap is falling from the sky and destroying everything. I was trying to get across the Manhattan Bridge to find Blaine and the thing got hit so bad that sections of the road were falling into the water." Kurt's emotions were starting to get the better of him as he heard his voice crack. "So I have no idea where Blaine is and I no longer have a way of getting to Brooklyn to find him."
"Woah, okay, I'm sure Blaine's fine. You'll find him, man." Chuck patted his shoulder in a gesture of comfort. "This is what I know so far. You know that there was an asteroid poised to hit Earth, right?"
Kurt nodded his head yes.
"Well, they sent a spacecraft up to redirect its orbit so it was no longer headed towards us. From what I've heard, the spaceship wasn't powerful enough to redirect it and it ended up hitting the asteroid and blowing up. All of this crap raining down on us is from that explosion. It's only affecting the east coast of the US right now."
Kurt just stood there, mouth agape.
"So now they are trying to figure out if the asteroid was knocked off its course enough to avoid impacting us. Or if it didn't, where and when it might impact." Chuck looked oddly calm considering the news he had just delivered.
"Ok, no offense, Chuck, but why the hell do you look so calm?" Kurt asked after he regained his ability to form sentences.
"No offense taken, man. It's simple. I have a shelter all ready to go and I have my jump bag here with all of my essentials. Once this initial round of insanity passes and all the space junk stops falling, we're going to make our way to my shelter."
"We?" Kurt asked as he looked around and didn't see anyone else but Chuck.
"Yeah, two other guys from our dance lab are with me. They are down the other end of the garage looking for supplies; open cars we can boost, any supplies we can use. Hey, you are welcome to come with us. There's plenty of room and food for you and Blaine."
Kurt considered it for a minute. That was looking like a decent option. As much as he made fun of those doomsday preppers on that reality TV show, in this situation, they didn't seem all that nuts. He needed to let Chuck know that there were four of them though, and that 3 of them were still out there somewhere.
"Wow, Chuck, that's really nice of you and I think it's a great idea but I was actually on my way to find our two friends whose last known whereabouts were Times Square. If I can't get to Brooklyn to find Blaine, I need to focus on finding them. Do you have room for the four of us?" Kurt scrunched up his face waiting for Chuck to say no.
"Sure! Hey, do you need help finding them? We could venture out now, I think. I haven't seen much else falling from the sky recently."
Torn between not wanting anyone to hold him back and really wanting some help, he decided to accept Chuck's help. "OK, great. I'd appreciate it if you'd help me find our friends."
"Okay, just let me get Matt and Chris," he said as he disappeared into the darker part of the garage.
If Matt and Chris were the two guys he was thinking of, then he knew who they were. Matt was a cool guy, but not all that great at dancing. Plus, Kurt was pretty sure he wasn't a morning person because he always looked like he was sleeping through his dance routines. They shared a class on Tuesday afternoons though, and in that class Matt was always talkative and energetic. He and Matt had swapped notes from class on occasion too if one of them wasn't able to make it. Overall, he was a good guy.
Chris, however, was a different story. Kurt didn't care for Chris very much. When they lined up during dance lab, Chris always stood behind Blaine and he was certain that he caught the guy staring at Blaine's ass as he was bent over stretching. Kurt even shot the guy a dirty look one day when he saw what he was doing and Chris just smiled when he saw that Kurt was rattled. Jerk. He wasn't getting any of Kurt's granola bars.
Kurt turned around and looked back outside. It was quieter than it had been earlier when he was by the bridge. He was hoping that they could all make it to Times Square without incident. He also thought that if he passed an electronics store that he should try to buy or acquire one of those emergency radios that Chuck had with him. Now that he knew some of what was going on, he wanted to stay on top of what was happening with the asteroid.
It was darker than normal for this time of night between most of the streetlights being out and the heavy layer of smoke that still blanketed the air. He had picked up a flashlight earlier on his supply run and he pulled it out now and put batteries in it. Then he opened a Nutri-grain bar, ate it, and washed it down with the other half of bottle of water from earlier. Dinner of champions, he thought.
Chuck reappeared with Matt and Chris in tow. Dammit, it was the Chris from dance lab. The fiancé ass starer.
"Hey Kurt, how's it going?" Matt asked.
He looked at the guy like he was nuts. How's it going? How do you think it's going? Instead of giving his usual sassy response to a question that stupid, he gave Matt the benefit of the doubt. After all, what do you really say to someone during a natural disaster? And it wasn't Chris that asked.
"It's been better. I'm hoping to find Blaine and our friends and then I'll let you know how I'm doing." Kurt felt bad because his reply still had a bit of edge to it. So he followed it up with, "How are you holding up?"
"Same. Neither of us can get in touch with our parents, who live on the other side of the country. There's no way we can travel that far by car or by foot, so we're lucky enough to have found Chuck, who offered to let us stay with him."
Kurt just shook his head. "Yeah, my family is in Ohio. I can't even find Blaine a borough away, let alone contact my dad in Ohio. I'm glad I ran into you guys too."
Chris spoke up, "You haven't heard from Blaine? We can definitely help you find him, don't worry."
Chuck jumped in, deciding the pity party needed to end. He missed Kurt's dirty look at Chris as he directed his question at Chris, "Were you able to find something we can drive later? Or two somethings? Now that we've added to our merry band of misfits?"
Chris nodded, "Yeah, there's a red kidnapper looking van on the second floor. It was open and there was a key in a magnetic holder under the wheel well. I guess with a van that looks like that, you don't expect anyone to take it. We'll have to unload it though. It must belong to a guy in a band because the back is filled with guitars and amps."
Chuck laughed, "Okay, that shouldn't be a problem. We'll need time for all the cars to clear out anyway, so let's hoof it up to find Kurt's friends and then we can come back and clear out the van."
With a solid plan in place, the four of them set out to find Nick and Jeff, and hopefully, Blaine.
Sitting down on the sidewalk, hands on his knees and his head hung low, Blaine tried to regroup and figure out just how he was going to get out of Brooklyn. With the two bridges being destroyed, there was no way he could walk or drive out. He could try to get out through Staten Island but that would take him forever and traveling over a bunch more, probably destroyed, bridges.
His stomach growled loudly as he sat there thinking about his next move, so he reached into his bag and pulled out a bag of cashews. The salty taste of the cashews was a wonderful change of pace from the smoke taste that had been occupying his mouth. He took a few sips of water in between mouthfuls to help wash everything down. Even that little bit of nutrition was enough to help him to feel more like himself. Blaine couldn't go long without eating or he got very light headed and grumpy. Kurt liked to refer to it as him being "hangry", and knew to give him a cookie or a snack.
Blaine wished Kurt were here to give him a cookie. He missed him so much even though it had only been a few hours since they had last seen each other. He knew Kurt was capable of taking care of himself, but Blaine loved being able to calm and comfort him when Kurt needed him. It gave Blaine as sense of purpose and anchored him. Right then he felt a little lost without his other half.
Trying to channel his Boy Scout training from when he was younger, he thought about what to do in a situation when you are lost or separated from your group. Your first priority is to make sure you are in a safe area. Blaine looked around and decided that being in the vicinity of a quickly deteriorating bridge was not the best idea. He quickly got up, packed his things back into his backpack and walked in the opposite direction of the bridge.
The sidewalks and streets were filled with cars and people reevaluating their own escape options. Those in cars were trapped in the gridlock of traffic that was trying to get out over the bridges. They now had to wait until the people behind them turned around or moved so they could move. People were walking back east, away from the bridges, not sure of what to do next. Blaine was among those people having to rethink his plan.
Then he saw it and the light bulb went off- the subway station. The trains couldn't be running any more, right? I mean, nothing seemed to be running when he went down there before to check on Kurt's train. He could walk underground in the subway tunnels to Manhattan. He'd only need to go from the last Brooklyn station to the first station on the other side of the river in Manhattan. That wasn't that far. At least it didn't seem that far when they were on the train.
Deciding that was his best option at the moment, Blaine headed towards the stairs leading down into the station. As he got to the bottom, habit had him pulling out his Metro card to slide through the slot so he could enter the turnstiles. He laughed and put it back in his pocket once he realized that there was no power to the card readers nor were there any station attendants working. Instead, he hopped over the turnstile and landed deftly on the platform.
Apparently, he was not the only one that got the idea to take the tunnels over and he was glad because he felt like there was safety in numbers. A train conductor was way more likely to see 50 or so people in a tunnel than just one person in a tunnel. He looked down over the edge of the platform to the tracks. There was all manner of unspeakable things down there. He was betting that if Kurt were here and had to do this, he would refuse to go on account of getting his designer shoes dirty. Not to mention the fact that there was a disgusting, damp, hot breeze emanating from the tunnel, which was probably disintegrating the hours-old hair gel in Blaine's hair.
Blaine thought that that would be the last straw for Kurt. No way would he go through that damp tunnel and risk his hair becoming gross. He remembered the time that he and Kurt went to the waterpark out in Ohio and Kurt refused to go on any rides, stating that he'd look like a drowned rat afterwards. That stubborn, beautiful man sat in a pool side lounger all day with his e-reader and waved to Blaine as he went down slide after slide. His hair was flawless at the end of the day and Blaine's resembled that of a man who had a run in with a light socket.
Knowing that, he also felt better because he thought Kurt most likely would not be trying to make his way over to Brooklyn through the tunnels, and he sure as hell wasn't trying to swim his way over either. Looking down once more and cringing at the filth he was about to jump into, Blaine sat on the edge of the platform and slid down onto the floor of the tunnel.
Instantly, something squished under his feet and he jumped, and looked down to see that it was just a rotten banana. Damn, he needed to be less squeamish if he was going to make it all the way across to the other station. There were people already ahead of him in the tunnel and they seemed unharmed so far. He couldn't help but feel a slight trepidation in heading into an enclosed tunnel under a river with the ever present threat of a train barreling down at you.
Everything in his nature yelled for him to turn back, there had to be another way, but his heart overrode all of his survival instincts. He needed to get to Kurt and find him and make sure he was safe and unharmed. That was the driving force behind his decision and the only thing that kept his feet moving forward into the darkness.
Before he was completely immersed in darkness, Blaine took off his backpack and retrieved the flashlight he had put in there. The tunnel was so dark that the beam of light only let him see the floor about 3 feet in front of him. He was following behind a group of what appeared to be business men in suits and expensive looking shoes. Blaine was thankful for the fact that he was dressed in jeans, a polo shirt and a sweater. It lent itself better to crawling through subway tunnels in an apocalypse than a business suit.
A giant drop of something dripped from the ceiling, hit Blaine's gelled hair and ran down the front of his face onto his sweater. GROSS! He didn't even want to think about what liquid that might have been. He kept his eyes focused forward, looking for any signs of a train, and listening for any indication of panic from the people ahead.
"Hey, do you mind if I follow you?" came a voice from about 2 feet behind Blaine.
"Holy shit!" Blaine exclaimed. He didn't realize there was anyone following that closely behind him. He looked back to see a fairly normal looking man in a polo shirt and khakis. It looked like the guy was on his way home from work when all of this started. He didn't have a briefcase or backpack, just whatever fit in his pants pockets. His hair was mussed and it looked like he may have been running since he was out of breath. "Oh, sorry. You scared me half to death! I didn't realize you were there. Sure, no problem. The flashlight's not doing much but at least it's kept me from tripping and falling so far."
The guy chuckled a little at having startled Blaine and then followed next to him as they proceeded down the tunnel. Blaine was an optimist by nature and usually pretty trusting of people. Though at that moment, he had a sick feeling in his stomach. He was alone in a dark tunnel, under water, with limited supplies and a stranger tagging along next to him. I mean the guy looked normal but, who's to say he wouldn't jump him and take his backpack? The guy didn't have anything with him, not even a flashlight.
Obviously the stench of old train oil and rat poop was getting to him. He needed to stop that line of negative thinking and concentrate on getting to the end of the tunnel. What was that noise? Was it a train? His eyes had somewhat adjusted to the dark but he still couldn't see that far ahead of them in the tunnel.
If he got out of this alive, he promised himself that he would make it a point to always be wary of what he last said to Kurt. He was still bothered that he hadn't called him back or at least texted Kurt that he loved him. Blaine had been so focused on getting to his piano lesson on time. If he had just taken 2 seconds, at least he'd feel better about the last thing he said to Kurt. Now guilt was one of the many feelings swirling through his mind as he made his way slowly through the dark.
The guy next to Blaine stopped and put his arm out to halt Blaine's forward motion. Blaine's immediate reaction was to turn on the guy with his hands up to defend himself.
"Shh, relax. I thought I heard something," the now defensive guy said.
Blaine relaxed his stance as he was told and strained his ears to see if he could hear what the guy had heard. It appeared to be two noises- a dripping noise and a scraping noise. The dripping noise had been there pretty much the whole time. He guessed that was water making its way through the concrete. At least that's what he told himself it was so he didn't get too grossed out. The scraping noise was what bothered him.
Shining the flashlight ahead of them, then next to them, and then on the walls of the shaft, he didn't immediately see anything. He turned around to tell the guy it was all clear and as he shifted the flashlight ahead of him, he shrieked!
"What?" the guy asks, startled from Blaine's screaming.
"Oh geeze, it's a rat!" Blaine exclaimed as he aimed the light at the furry creature about 5 feet in front of them. Blaine laughed it off, and moved forward, feeling a little silly about the screaming. The guy had now dropped back a little behind him. He probably thought Blaine was nuts. Blaine was oddly okay with him keeping his distance considering he didn't really trust the guy.
As they walked on in the narrow, dark tunnel, there was a sudden noise from above them. It shook the whole tunnel and made Blaine pick up his pace even more. If this thing was giving way he did not want to be underwater when it happened. He broke out into a slow jog.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said the guy behind him, "These tunnels are slippery from all the motor oil from the subway cars. You don't want to fall down here."
Guess what? Slipping on motor oil and falling seemed less fatal than the entire tunnel collapsing and filling with water. He continued on his current pace as the tunnel shook again. Blaine had to steady himself on the side wall of the tunnel to keep from losing his footing. Were they having an earthquake now? He needed to get out of there immediately.
Once again, the entire tunnel shook and Blaine spun around, trying to get a handhold on the wall to keep himself upright. As he looked back, he saw that the tunnel was starting to crumble. A giant chunk of the ceiling crashed down in between him and polo shirt guy. Blaine jumped backwards and another piece came down, this one catching polo shirt guy on his chest, causing him to fall backwards.
Blaine saw it all play out in front of him in slow motion. The chunk of tunnel fell, hit the man, he fell backwards, hit his head on the subway track, and instantly snapped his head to the side. Blaine heard the sickening crunch as he saw the guy, lying completely still on the ground, blood coming from his ears and his nose.
He was definitely going to be sick and he held his stomach. Once he was sure he was safe from any immediate harm, he turned and wretched, bringing up the contents of his stomach. His hands were shaking and he could barely stand. He had never witnessed anyone die before, heck he couldn't even remember attending anyone's funeral. His grandparents were still alive and he had absolutely no experience with death.
Before he completely collapsed in a heap on the disgusting ground, he leaned a hand up against the wall as he doubled over, trying to collect himself. He forced himself into a standing position once again and took a few deep cleansing breaths. He didn't even know the guy's name. Getting out of this tunnel quickly had to be his focus. It was not the time to mourn the loss of his travel companion.
Retrieving the flashlight he had tucked into the side pouch of his backpack, he continued on through the tunnel, not jogging any more. Up ahead he heard the sounds of other people cheering. He must have been near the station in Manhattan! He was so close to being in the same place he thought Kurt might be. The thought of finding Kurt and wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug is what fueled him to keep going and get to the end of the tunnel.
It got lighter towards the end and he could see that people were helping others up onto the platform from the tracks. It was nice to see New Yorkers band together to help each other in times like this. Usually, they gave you a dirty look when you asked them to move forward so you could fit on the train and not have to wait for the next one to arrive.
Blaine was moving faster now, being mindful of his traction on the ground. The light cast by the station lights gave him more confidence in his footing, so he could move faster and not have to depend on the flashlight. He finally reached the station and a larger man reached his hand down, offering to help Blaine up onto the platform.
"Thanks, man! Much appreciated!" Blaine said as he landed safely on the tiles of the platform.
The man nodded and they all proceeded to the stairway leading to street level. The air in the station was cool and damp, not the usual hot and smelly air from the train exhaust. This station wasn't that far under the street level so there were only two short flights of stairs up to the sidewalk. When his left foot hit the first stair, he was elated. Finally in Manhattan!
As he was climbing up the stairs, he heard a weird gushing sound and a low rumble. He couldn't imagine what the heck was making that noise. It didn't sound encouraging though and he started to run up the steps, taking them two at a time. As he was doing so he thought maybe he shouldn't rush towards the sound in case it was more incoming projectiles, being underground would be safer.
Before he could even make up his mind one way or another, he was violently whisked backwards down the stairs by a huge wave of water. Blaine struggled to catch his breath and was completely disoriented as he opened his eyes and just saw water everywhere. He tried to paddle forward, towards the stairs again, but the rush was too much. His lungs burned from holding his breath and his eyes stung from trying to keep them open underwater. It was like being trapped in a huge swimming pool.
After a few seconds of struggling, his whole body went limp. He was floating along so peacefully until it dawned on him what was happening. Blaine was drowning.
A/N- OK, don't hurt me… I have Chapter 8 written. I just need to tweak it and get it reviewed. So you won't have to wait long. Thanks to Kelly B for referring readers, she's the best, isn't she? Thanks to all of you for giving my story a chance. I love you all. And thanks to my lovely betas. You know who you are. Never stop challenging me and pushing me to be better.
