Blaine knocked on Kurt's door and waited a moment before knocking again. In the moment that he paused he felt a sharp spike in the echo of Kurt's feelings. Something definitely had him feeling agitated and anxious. He knew Kurt would be home because he remembered him mentioning that Tuesdays were his main 'office' day and that usually involved him being holed up in his study. Giving up on waiting for him to come to the door he tried the door handle and when it opened he stepped in. Pausing inside the door he heard banging and muffled cursing coming from the bathroom where the door was partially open. Dropping his coat and book bag by the door he hurried down the hall. As he did he was vaguely aware of the hall carpet being increasingly soggy as he neared the bathroom. Looking through the door in trepidation, he wasn't sure what he would find.
"Oh shit, Kurt! Are you okay?" he spoke in a shocked tone, as he charged into the room.
This seemed like a reasonable if somewhat idiotic thing to say in a situation in which a normally controlled and calm man was splayed on his own bathroom floor struggling with a broken water pipe and cursing wildly in the process.
When Blaine spoke Kurt paused briefly in his flailing and swearing to shoot a shocked and disbelieving look at the man who had just appeared.
"Really! Does it look like I'm okay? I've been stuck here on the floor for over an hour trying to shut this off, in which time it's probably flooded my entire apartment and I couldn't do anything about it!" he raged.
Blaine dropped to his knees beside the saturated and irate Kurt and peering under the sink amidst the fountain of water trying to see the source of the problem.
"Yup, busted." Blaine confirmed. This was met with a frustrated huff. "Do you have any old clothes that I can rip up?"
"Nothing really" Kurt replied. "What do you want them for?"
"Well I guess I'll just use this", Blaine said as he stripped off his shirt and undershirt. Grabbing one seam he tore the undershirt in half and then one half was efficiently made into strips as he continued to speak. "I can use it to make a stopper for the hole and then wrap it tight around the break like a tourniquet" Blaine explained. "That will give us a bit of time to find a plumber who can replace the pipe without your entire apartment being flooded. It won't hold for long but it's better than nothing."
Once the immediate danger of further flooding had been lessened to a slow trickle Blaine turned to see Kurt struggling to get back into his chair. It seemed to be made more difficult by the awkward angles and his position on the wet cold floor. Moving over to him Blaine offered help as Kurt continued to struggle.
"Here, let me help?" Blaine said, reaching out to put his hand on Kurt's shoulder.
Kurt sagged momentarily. "Fine", he stated stiffly." I can use your shoulders like a brace and you can give me a push up" he indicated where Blaine needed to be.
Kneeling by Kurt, Blaine got as close to the chair as possible. Preparing himself Blaine put one arm around Kurt's waist and the other under his knees while Kurt placed one hand on the chair seat and the other on Blaine's shoulder.
"Okay, on count of three" Kurt continued in a tight voice. "One…two…three…."
Just as Blaine lifted and Kurt shoved, the wheelchair shot backwards and both men ended up in a heap on the water covered floor. There was a brief pause where everything seemed to freeze as Blaine lay partially sprawled over Kurt. Then suddenly everything rushed back to life.
"Oh my god, Kurt! Are you okay? I'm so sorry. Let me help you!" he said reaching out in concern.
"Stop, just stop! I don't need help. I haven't needed help for a long time and I still don't need it now. I should just do things for myself." He stated angrily.
As he spoke, Kurt shuffled to the edge of the bath-tub and securing his chair beside it, turning his back, he hauled himself upright and onto the bench seat that lay across one end of the shower.
"But Kurt! What about all the water and what if you get stuck again?" Blaine asked in concern.
Kurt's eyes flashed in anger. "Get out!"
"But…."
"Just get out!" Kurt pointed forcefully at the door. "I don't need anyone, I'm fine on my own. Life is… better"
Scrambling up off the floor Blaine practically flew down the hall where he scooped up his bag and coat, before disappearing out the door. The last thing he heard was Kurt's voice breaking mid rant into what sounded suspiciously like tears, as the door closed behind him. He considered turning back as his Connection called him to Kurt but his head told him to get away from the complicated situation behind him.
