A/N: Thanks for reading. Any feedback is greatly appreciated :)

I don't own Glee.

Chapter 23

"I don't have a good feeling about this."

"Guys—"

"What if the infection isn't completely gone?"

"He may not be strong enough to travel yet."

"Hey, guys—"

"I think we need to wait—"

"Everyone stop!"

It took Blaine roaring at the top of his lungs to get everyone to stop arguing, quite literally right above him. Propping himself up on his elbows, he waited a few seconds to make sure everyone would stay quiet while he addressed the group.

"You guys are talking about me like I'm not even here," he started. "I've been awake for a week now, my wound has scabbed over and I'm feeling a lot better. I think it's time to start moving on from the cave."

"So you've said, Blaine," Kurt sighed somewhat impatiently. "But you have been flat on your back for almost three weeks and more than half of that you spent on the brink of death!"

"Kurt's right," Santana added. "I don't see what the rush is, we've got plenty of food here and a good source of water, I don't really see why we need to risk it."

"We can't be more than five miles outside of the community border, that's the rush," Blaine said. "At some point, they may decide to come after us and if they do, it'll make it that much easier for them to find us if we're right under their noses. We need to move and we need to move now."

The group began squabbling again as everyone tried to get their point across. It was very clearly three against one, but Blaine was holding his ground on the matter.

"You know what?" Kurt finally said angrily. "You guys figure it out, I'm going to go for a walk. If Blaine wants to kill himself by leaving before he's got his strength back there's nothing I can do about it."

Kurt pushed passed a stunned Santana and Marina and moved aside the brush that concealed the entrance to the cave. The bright sun caused his vision to darken momentarily, but within a few seconds he was on his way, taking his normal path to the creek near the cave. The more he thought about leaving the place they'd called home for several weeks, the more frightened he became. The thought was almost scarier than leaving the community had been. Blaine's injury had hit Kurt hard. It rattled his confidence and his belief that they were all going to survive this mess. He couldn't stand the thought of losing any of them, but especially Blaine.

"Kurt?" a small voice called out from behind him. He turned around to find Marina trailing him.

"Are you okay?" she asked. "You're crying."

Kurt hadn't even noticed the angry tears sliding down his cheeks. He wiped them away with a ragged sleeve and sat down at the bank of the creek, motioning for Marina to join him.

"I just have a lot on my mind," Kurt answered. It was the dumbest answer he could have given. They all had a lot on their minds, they'd all been living the same life now for a month, ever since their escape.

"I know," Marina acknowledged softly. "You really love him, don't you?"

"I do," Kurt answered immediately. "I don't think he understands how scared I was. How scared I still am. If we leave before he's ready, who's to say he won't get sick again? I know he thinks he's ready, but you've seen him. He can't even sit up for more than a half hour at a time before having to lay back down again. He's not strong enough."

"Look at it from his point of view," Marina started. "He feels guilty. He feels like he's put everyone in danger by having to stay here and even though none of it is his fault and even though he's not really able, he wants to protect everyone and keep us safe. In his mind, that means we have to start moving out."

"I hadn't really thought about that," Kurt mused. "Have I told you lately how smart you are?"

"You tell me every day," Marina giggled. "That's why—"

"Shh!"

Kurt's finger flew to his mouth as he cut Marina off. She sat there for a moment with her mouth open but silent. Kurt's eyes were darting back and forth. Then Marina heard it.

There were footsteps off in the distance. They were coming from the opposite direction toward the cave and they were marching in unison. It definitely wasn't Santana or Blaine. The footsteps were too far away and there were too many for just two people.

"What do we do?" Marina whispered, her voice trembling.

Kurt looked at her while he tried to figure out a plan. They couldn't make it back to the cave in time without being seen or heard. Their options were to stay on the creek bank or to run and Kurt feared that if they stayed they would be found.

"We need to run," he answered in the quietest, calmest whisper he could manage. Inside, his heart was pounding so hard he was afraid the sound of it would reach the marching men.

"What about Santana and Blaine?" Marina asked. "We can't leave them."

"Did you put the brush back in place when you followed me out?" Kurt asked. Marina nodded with wide eyes. "Good. They'll be fine then as long as they stay quiet. But we won't be if we don't run. I need you to run as fast and as quietly as you can okay? Make sure you check your footing every couple of steps so you don't snag a tree root. Got it?"

Marina nodded. Kurt felt bad for lying to her. He had no idea if the cave was concealed well enough to keep the others safe. And if either decided to venture out or if their argument became too heated and their voices loud enough to attract attention, they would be dead. But Kurt couldn't think about that. He had to focus on the promise he'd made to both Santana and himself. His number one priority was to keep Marina safe and as much as he wanted to make his way back to the cave to get the others, there was no way of doing that without killing them all.

Kurt grabbed Marina's hand and squeezed it before quickly and quietly helping her to her feet. He let go of her hand and leaped to the other side of the creek, motioning for her to do the same. Once they were both over they began running. Kurt stayed behind Marina to shield her from any attacks from behind and to be able to pay better attention to their surroundings. He wanted to make sure they could make their way back to the cave if possible without getting lost.

After several miles, the adrenaline coursing through Marina's veins finally gave out and she stopped in her tracks, bracing her forearms on her thighs as she hunched over, trying to catch her breath. Kurt found himself doing the same. Once their breathing evened out a bit and Kurt could hear above the sounds of his lungs overworking, he tilted his head toward the direction they'd been running in. There was nothing but silence.

"What now?" Marina breathed heavily.

"I think we should get off the ground," Kurt said, looking up to the trees above them. "That way if they do come out this far, we'll be able to scout them out and see what direction they head in."

Marina nodded and Kurt began walking around looking for the best tree.

"This one looks good," Kurt announced after a few minutes.

"What are we going to do about food and water?" Marina asked. "Neither of us have our bags."

"Shit," Kurt muttered under his breath. He hadn't even thought about it. He always remembered to bring his pack with him when he left the cave, but he had been so upset this time, he hadn't even thought about it.

"Let's gather what we can, okay?" Kurt instructed. "I'm not sure if there's a water source around here, but we'll find some plants with a higher water content. Do you remember which ones to get from the field guide?"

"I think so," Marina answered with a small amount of confidence. It wasn't often in this situation that she got to feel useful.

"Good," Kurt said. "We'll stick together and if anything happens, just follow my lead, alright?"

"Got it," she affirmed.

Several hours later, the pair found themselves up in the tree, assessing what they were able to gather. They had several pockets full of berries, some leafy plants and edible roots with a high water content. They hadn't been able to find a water source, but they didn't anticipate being in the tree for too long. Just in case, they'd fashioned a bowl out of bark and twigs and layered leaves on the inside to catch any rain that might fall. It was a long shot, but it was all they had.

Both of them quietly wondered to themselves how they were going to reunite with Blaine and Santana, or if they would even see the pair again. Neither wanted to discuss that second part out loud, so they both kept their thoughts to themselves.

Finally, Marina drifted to sleep as the sun was starting its slow descent toward the horizon, leaving Kurt all alone with his thoughts. He tried to think as logically as possible about how they could all hope to reunite, but it was no use. All he could think about was the last thing he'd said before he stormed out of the cave.

"If Blaine wants to kill himself by leaving before he's got his strength back there's nothing I can do about it."

Not 'I love you' or 'I care about you too much to let you risk your life again because you feel you're holding us back.' He'd spoken out of anger and fear and now it was possibly the last thing he'd ever say in Blaine's presence.

Kurt bit his fist to keep his sobs from becoming loud enough to wake Marina. Blaine and Santana could very well be dead right now, or imprisoned with the Officials and on their way back to the community for public execution. This wasn't in the plan. It was never a part of the plan for some of their group to make it out while others didn't. Kurt knew he'd done what he needed to do by keeping Marina safe, but that knowledge didn't make the truth any easier.

Santana and Blaine were probably dead, or at least as good as dead. And even if they weren't, there were several miles of separation between the two pairs and Kurt was fairly certain a return to the cave was not a smart or safe plan. If it was just him, maybe he would risk it, but he had to think about Marina and there was no way in hell he was going to take her back in the direction of those footsteps.

Just then, Marina let out a soft snore in her sleep and Kurt straightened up against the trunk. He had to pull himself together. Sitting there crying wasn't going to help anyone. He needed a plan.

Kurt spent the rest of the night going over different scenarios in his mind, weighing the pros and cons of each plan before eventually settling upon the one that he hoped would offer not only the best chance for survival, but also the best chance of reuniting with Blaine and Santana if such a thing were still possible.

He was still evening out the rough edges of his plan as he drifted off to sleep, his body finally winning the battle over his mind to give Kurt some much needed rest for the challenges that lay ahead of him.