Burt was glad Kurt had taken up football. Other than his singing club and working at the garage, the kid didn't do much. Football would be good for him.

It was only the third game of the season, and so far McKinley was undefeated. They were against a team from Westerville, and the boys on the team all had to be at least a hundred pounds bigger than Kurt. He looked like a dwarf compared to some of them. But Kurt was just a kicker. He was on the field for about five minutes of the whole game.

It only took that long for it to happen. It was only the second quarter of the game, but Kurt had to kick. Burt watched him get ready and step back. The first game of the season he did this whole little dance routine, but he had learned how to kick without needing Beyoncé to warm up. Burt watched anxiously, ready to see him score.

But he never even had a chance. The minute he started towards the ball, at least three of the gorillas from the other team tackled him. Burt stood up, his box of popcorn falling to the ground. The ref blew his whistle and they got off of him, but Burt knew something was wrong. Kurt was still lying there on the field, not moving. The coach and ref hurried out to him, and Burt shoved his way down the bleachers. He would never forgive himself if Kurt were hurt.

By the time Burt reached the field, his son was surrounded by trainers, the coach, and a few members of the McKinley team. He pushed through the small crowd and knelt down by Kurt.

"Dad," he said, reaching out for him. Burt took him in his arms and held him.

"I'm here," he soothed. "It's okay. Where's it hurt?" Kurt was crying too hard to talk. Burt looked him over, and then he saw it. His knee was bent in a way a knee should never bend. It wasn't backwards, but it had definitely popped out of place or something. Burt pulled Kurt's helmet off and pressed his head against his shoulder so he wouldn't see it. "It's okay, I got you."

Kurt was sobbing so hard Burt was afraid he would get sick. One of the trainers tried to take his shoe off and roll up his pants so it could be exposed, but Kurt howled in pain. Burt was doing his best to comfort him, but his efforts were pointless. The coach bent down next to Burt and talked to him quietly.

"Looks like a dislocation. We called an ambulance. You just keep him still. Don't let him move his legs at all," he told him. Burt nodded and thanked him, then turned back to his son.

"It hurts," Kurt whimpered, latching onto him even tighter.

"I know, buddy," Burt said. He shouldn't have let him play. He should've known something would happen. Kurt was too little to play football. "Sit still. We're going to get it taken care of." Burt grabbed one of his hands and let him squeeze it. Kurt was hardly able to breathe. He drew in quick, choked sobs. "Kurt, you got to breathe. Come on, take a deep breath."

Burt knew what it felt like to have a broken knee. He broke his kneecap and tore his ACL on his dirt bike when he was Kurt's age. Burt hoped he hadn't torn anything. He would need surgery and all that stuff. Kurt couldn't handle that.

Kurt started to breathe better, and Burt could tell he was slowly calming down. "There you go, kiddo. Hang on to me."

Burt held him and kept him still until paramedics showed up. They moved Kurt's knee, which caused him to scream into Burt's ear until all he could hear was a dull ringing. They put him on a stretcher and strapped him down. No matter how much they moved him around, Kurt wouldn't let go of Burt's hand. He stayed by his son, and sat up by his head in the ambulance.

"Don't leave, Dad," he hissed in pain. Burt couldn't leave even if he wanted to. There was no way Kurt was letting go of his hand.

"I'm staying with you," he promised him. "Take a deep breath. You're doing just fine, buddy." Kurt was already so worked up, but when a paramedic stuck an IV into the back of his hand he lost it. He kicked his good leg and tried to push the paramedic off of him. Burt grabbed his hands and forced him to settle down.

"Kurt, sit still," he said in a low voice. "They're trying to help you. Just relax. I'm right here." Kurt's crying went from high pitched and shrill to low and deep. He slowly became relaxed but was still crying. Burt was relieved he was getting calmed down, and hoped he would stay that way.

When they got to the hospital a nurse changed Kurt into a hospital gown and took him to get x-rays. Kurt was out of it and terrified of the thought of being apart from his dad. Burt held both of his hands and shushed him unsuccessfully.

"Don't go," Kurt pleaded. "No, Dad!" Burt let go of his hands.

"I have to step right outside while they take an x-ray," he told him. "I'll be right back. I won't even be gone ten seconds." He stepped back before Kurt could get even more upset. The technician did two x-rays and then the nurse took them back to an exam room.

Kurt had cried himself exhausted, and he was too tired to even keep his eyes open. He had to lie on his side they way his knee was positioned, so Burt rubbed his back and tried to talk to him.

"Are you feeling sleepy?" he asked him. Kurt shook his head slowly.

"I feel funny," he mumbled. "Where are we?"

"We're in the emergency room. You're gonna be okay. They just have to fix your knee up. Do you want to hold my hand?" Kurt didn't reply, but he reached out his hand. Burt took it and bent over, giving him a kiss on his cheek. He looked even littler in the hospital bed than he did on the football field. Burt didn't see what in the world sparked the other team to tackle him. All he was trying to do was kick the stupid football.

He knew Kurt was only doing football to make him proud, and that was what Burt felt the worst about. Kurt shouldn't have to think he needed to play a sport to make him proud. Kurt made him proud just being him. He was the only gay kid in his school, and he walked around like he was the best thing to happen to Lima, Ohio. And he was, to Burt.

"Dad," Kurt mumbled, looking up at him. "Did… did we win the game?" that was the last thing on Burt's mind, but he knew Kurt would be upset if they lost because he couldn't kick.

"Yup," he told him. He hoped it was true. "McKinley won." Kurt smiled to himself and closed his eyes. Burt stayed by his side, helping him when the pain became strong and telling him over and over that it would be okay. Kurt just kept begging to go home, and Burt didn't blame him.

Once the nurse and a doctor came in, they showed Burt the x-rays. His kneecap was pushed out of place, and his shin bone and thigh bone were separated. The doctor said it was dislocated, but he didn't need surgery. He just had to pop everything back in place. That sounded painful and Burt said so, but the nurse told him that Kurt would be sedated. The nurse put a syringe of medicine in his IV tubing, and soon Kurt's hand went limp in his.

"He's still conscious, he just won't feel anything. He can probably hear you if you talk to him," the nurse told him. Burt leaned down close to his son and brushed his sweaty hair out of his face. The doctor kept his x-ray pulled up on the computer screen and got started working on him. Burt didn't want to see what he was doing. He focused on Kurt and wrapped his arm around him.

"You're okay, kiddo," he said softly. Kurt automatically moved his head onto Burt's shoulder, and he kissed the top of his head. Kurt let out a small whimper, and seconds later Burt heard a snap. He looked down, and his leg was back in place. The doctor moved it back and forth slowly, and then left it alone.

"We're going to wrap it to stabilize it, and then put a brace on it. He needs to stay off of it for at least two weeks. You can make an appointment with an orthopedist to see about getting him back into football," the doctor told Burt. There was no way Kurt was playing any more football. Burt didn't like that he was just playing to impress him. A kid shouldn't have to do that to a parent. Burt held his son a little closer, and told himself he wouldn't let anything like that ever happen again.

Author's Notes:

Ugh poor baby. I can't imagine what it feels like to dislocate something, but it must be pretty painful. But then Burt takes care of him and everything is okay.

I'm going to be going on vacation, so tomorrow will be the last day I post this week. I get back on Tuesday, so depending on how late I get home I may or may not update that day. As much as I love writing this story I need a break every once in a while! I have a couple drabbles written on my Tumblr that people have prompted, so you can go there if you want to read more while I'm not posting (the link is on my profile). And if you have prompts then keep sending them to me and I'll write them all when I get back!