Title: I thought I was wounded to the core but I was only bruised
Fandom: Glee
Disclaimer: not my characters
Warnings: attempted suicide
Pairings: Kurt/Puck
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 235
Point of view: third
Prompt: The first time Puck said "I love you" was in his suicide note.
He's been sitting beside the bed for six hours now. Dad's outside talking to Mrs. Puckerman, Carole and Finn took Sarah to the cafeteria, and Kurt knows that Noah will be fine. Physically, anyway. He'll wake up sore, and his arms will scar. Badly. But he'll be alive.
Kurt's fingers clench on the paper, stained with two people's tears. Noah's alive, but he almost wasn't. He almost succeeded.
Kurt's reread the letter a dozen times since he sat down. Last night, he read it in the waiting room. He read it while Dad drove him to the hospital, after he found Noah.
He found Noah. He'll never forget it.
Five sentences. Addressed to Kurt; there was another for Mrs. Puckerman, another for Sarah, one for Beth. Kurt doesn't know what those say. Doesn't want to know.
The letter Noah wrote for Kurt is short, simple, and sweet:
You deserve better. I'm so sorry for all the stupid shit I've done. This isn't your fault, dude; I've been feeling like crap, and angry, and sad, for so long now… I promise, this isn't your fault, babe. You're the second best thing I've ever done.
I love you.
The first time Noah says it, it's the last thing Kurt was meant to see. Once Noah's feeling up to it, Kurt's going to slap him silly.
But for now, Kurt's sitting beside the bed, holding Noah's hand, rereading the words.