I'm so sorry I haven't updated this in FOREVER. I've been really busy with work and taking a summer class. But I'm back now!
Life continued on normally for Kurt and Blaine. There had been no sign of Blaine's father at all. Blaine's guess was that he was probably sitting and waiting, thinking his family would need to come back eventually. Kurt and Blaine passed their time like they always did: going to school, doing homework, singing and just hanging out and being in love. About two weeks had past and it was the day of the big Glee club fundraiser. Kurt and Blaine were getting ready in Kurt's room. Kurt was fixing his hair and Blaine was rifling through his duffel bag to find his tie. "Shit, I think my mom forgot to pack my tie," Blaine said.
"Well I probably have one just like it if you want to use that," Kurt said.
"No, that will look silly. I need the real one," Blaine said. Kurt knew what that meant.
"You're not going home," Kurt said, turning around to look at Blaine.
"But I need my tie."
"Then I'll go with you," Kurt said. Blaine looked up to find Kurt now staring at him, completely terrified. "I just don't want you getting hurt."
"Relax, I'll be fine. It's noon on a Saturday. My father's at work. He always works Saturdays. I'll just sneak into the house, get my tie and then leave. There's nothing to worry about," Blaine said, kissing Kurt on the forehead, grabbing his keys and heading out. Kurt finished getting ready and drove to McKinley with a pit in his stomach. He had a terrible feeling about this. Kurt had estimated Blaine would get to the school by 2:00. No sign of him. Two thirty hit. No sign of him. Kurt texted him. Are you okay? No reply. That was very uncharacteristic of Blaine. Three o'clock hit. Nothing. Three Thirty hit. Still nothing. Kurt was freaking out. Suddenly, there was a knock on the glee room door. Cooper was standing there, looking very sullen. Kurt knew he was right. Cooper didn't have time to speak before Kurt grabbed his bag and ran out of the room, practically pulling Cooper behind him. Wordlessly, Cooper made Kurt get into his car and he drove off.
"What happened?" Kurt asked.
"I'll explain later," Cooper said, driving well above the speed limit.
"No, actually, you'll explain it to me now!" Kurt yelled. "I have worked my damndest to keep Blaine safe through this and the one time I let him go home…" Kurt couldn't contain his tears any longer.
"It's not your fault," Cooper said. He sighed before continuing. "Blaine came home to get his tie thinking dad was at work. Well, ever since Blaine and mom left, dad hasn't been going to work. So when Blaine got there, he was there waiting for him." Kurt was shaking.
"Just tell me if he's okay, please," Kurt begged.
"We're going to the hospital," Cooper said.
"The hospital?! Coop, what did he do to Blaine?!"
Cooper sniffed and Kurt saw the tears well up in the usually very brave boy's eyes. "Dad has always been an avid hunter. It was something he did to unwind when he was uptight. I guess dad had just gone hunting and he was cleaning his guns when Blaine came back…" Cooper didn't have time to finish. Kurt had flung open the car door and was now vomiting on the side of the road. Cooper rubbed his back. Once his stomach was empty, he couldn't sit back up. He was crying too hard and couldn't control his muscles anymore.
"Just tell me if he's going to be okay," Kurt choked out.
"We don't know. I found Blaine on the floor bleeding when I got home. I'd come into town for the fundraiser. I made the 911 call and rode with him in the ambulance. We got separated when they took him into the trauma room," Cooper explained.
"Was he…" Kurt couldn't continue. He couldn't bear to think about Blaine not making it.
"He was alive when I found him. I kept him awake and talking to me while we waited for the ambulance. He wasn't doing too well on the ambulance ride over, though. Mom said she'd call if anything changed. I haven't gotten a call since I left." Kurt had composed himself and gotten back into the car. Cooper gathered his composure and pulled back onto the road. "He did want me to pass on a message to you. Right when he was fading in and out, he told me to tell you this: He says thank you for making this last year the best of his life. He loves you so much, Kurt and you make him so happy." Kurt couldn't move.
"He can't say goodbye," Kurt whispered. "I can't say goodbye. Not yet. We haven't lived. We never got our penthouse in New York City or went on a carriage ride through Central park or sang in a Broadway musical together or grew old together and he was supposed to die in my arms when we are 100 years old. He can't leave me yet."
"He's a fighter, Kurt. He's not going to go down without putting up the fight of his life," Cooper said. They were just pulling into the hospital parking lot. Kurt bolted out of the car and ran to the glass revolving doors of the emergency room, Cooper hot on his heels. The first person he saw was his own father, the second, Sarah Anderson. Kurt was making a mad dash for the wooden doors that led to the triage rooms, but his father caught him in a bear hug before he could get through.
"Let me go!" Kurt shrieked. He kicked and screamed and even landed a few good blows to his father's groin with his boots, but his father's grip remained strong.
"Calm down, Sport. The doctors are working on him right now. You need to let them do their job," Kurt said. Kurt had lost all control of his muscles and was no longer able to resist or even stand on his own two feet. He felt like a rag doll in his father's arms. He was now crying uncontrollably into his father's broad shoulder.
"It's all my fault. I should have stopped him. Or gone with him," Kurt sobbed.
"You couldn't have done anything Kurt. Blaine's a stubborn kid. But he's also tough. He's going to be okay," Sarah chimed in, rubbing Kurt's back. Kurt peeked up.
"Did the doctors say anything yet? What's wrong with him?" Kurt asked.
"One of the surgeons…" Sarah began.
"Surgeons?" Kurt yelled?
"Yes Kurt. Blaine is in surgery. When he got shot…" Sarah's voice cracked. "When he got shot, one of the bullets nicked an artery. He lost a lot of blood. They have to find the source of the bleeding in order to save him." Kurt slumped back down onto his father's shoulder. Ever since he was a baby, the smell of his father, motor oil and cheap aftershave, was comforting to him. Kurt felt his muscles tense less. As if on cue, a surgeon walked into the waiting room.
"Mrs. Anderson?" he asked. Sarah turned around.
"That's me," she said.
"I'm Dr. Chandler, Blaine's surgeon. Is this the rest of the family?" he asked. Burt began to speak, but Sarah chimed in first.
"Yes it is," she said. Kurt let out a squeak under his breath. "How is my son?" she asked.
"We found the hole in the artery in his chest and it's all fixed. He's still unconscious because he lost a dangerous amount of blood. We're giving him a transfusion but now it's up to him to wake up," he said. Kurt couldn't take his eyes off of the splash of red on the blue surgical booties that covered Dr. Chandler's shoes. He hid his eyes back in his father's shoulder so he wouldn't have to see it.
"When can we go see him?" Sarah asked.
"You can go see him in about an hour. We have to make sure he stabilizes after the surgery. I'll come back to tell you when you can go and see him," Dr. Chandler said.
"Thank you so much!" Kurt cried, flinging his arms around the doctor's neck. He stumbled backwards, catching himself before falling over. He chuckled.
"You're welcome, son," the doctor said, pulling Kurt aside to a corner of the room. "And don't worry about not being let back to see Blaine because you're not actually family." Kurt gave him a confused look. "Blaine woke up for a few moments in the ER and all he could say was 'Kurt.' I'm assuming he wouldn't be crying for a sibling like that. He really loves you." Kurt smiled, choking back tears. "And plus, if my boyfriend found out you didn't get to see Blaine, I would be walking the plank." Kurt chuckled, his eyes filling with light and happiness.
"Thank you, doctor," Kurt said again. The doctor smiled and left the room. Kurt took a deep breath and sat down in a hard plastic hospital chair.
"Kurt, how do you take your coffee?" Cooper asked.
"Black, two sugars," Kurt said, reaching for his wallet.
"Don't. It's on me," Cooper said. Kurt nodded and Cooper and Burt left the room to get coffee, leaving Sarah and Kurt alone.
"I'm sorry," Kurt said, very quietly, almost hoping that Sarah wouldn't hear him.
"Sorry for what, Kurt?" Sarah asked.
"I shouldn't have let Blaine go. He was just so insistent that he would be fine and I really trusted him," Kurt said, the tears welling up again.
"You couldn't have stopped him if you tried. He's a tricky one. He can weasel you into letting you do anything he thinks is a good idea. Usually it is a good idea and today is the first exception I can think of. So don't for a damn minute think that it's your fault that Blaine is hurt. You care so much about my son and I thank you so much for keeping him safe for as long as you could," Sarah said, pulling Kurt into her. He rested his head on her shoulder. Cooper and Burt came back with the coffee and they waited in silence for the next hour until Dr. Chandler came back.
"Blaine is sleeping peacefully right now, so you can go and see him if you promise to be very quiet," he said, leading them to an elevator and then to a small room down a long hallway. "I'm warning you now, he's hooked up to monitors and IVs and he's going to be in a bit of pain when he wakes up, but I am sure he is going to recover fine within a few weeks."
"Kurt, you should go in first in case he wakes up," Sarah said.
"I'm not his family…"Kurt began.
"No, you're not. You're his life, Kurt. You're his world. You need to be with him," Cooper said. Kurt's eyes teared up. He took a deep breath, nodded, and let Dr. Chandler lead him into Blaine's hospital room.
Oh, I seem to have left a cliffhanger here! See you soon, readers! :-D
