"Stop," Kurt whined, pushing Blaine away from him. "Your hands are cold." Blaine pulled his arm away from Kurt's face and instead pushed back his hair that was sticking to his forehead.
"I'm not cold, you're just hot," Blaine corrected him. "You still have a fever. It's not as bad, but it's still there. Do you want me to stay here with you for the afternoon? I can do that if you feel bad enough. Or I can go back to class and bring you something back for dinner."
"Go to class," Kurt insisted, his eyes already shut again as he waved Blaine away. Blaine wasn't so sure, but he didn't want to stick around if Kurt didn't want him. He bid him a quiet goodbye and left for his algebra II afternoon class across campus.
It had all started a week earlier. Jeff, Nick, Trent, and Scott had all come down with the stomach flu randomly. Wes still insisted on still holding Warblers rehearsal, even with the four sick council members. Nick had been dumb enough to actually show up, and after getting a little too close to Kurt during the number, he had infected him.
Blaine had been spared, thank goodness, but couldn't just leave his friend alone to suffer in his dorm room all day. So, he stopped by at lunch. Kurt was still sick as a dog, but thankfully wasn't as bad as the previous night. Blaine had dropped by Kurt's room shortly before midnight to see if he had any extra calculator batteries, only to find him in a zombie-like state, curled up in his bed with trash bin close at hand.
Needless to say, it was a long night. But at least Kurt was doing better and Blaine still remained healthy. He went to all of Kurt's classes to pick up the work he had missed, and after his last class of the day, English, he returned to the dorms to give it to Kurt and see how he was doing.
He was sleeping, which came as no surprise after the night they had both endured. Blaine laid the folder with his assignments on the nightstand, pulled the comforter up a little higher on Kurt's shoulders, and left him to rest until dinnertime.
Since it was a Friday night, Blaine didn't bother with homework. He cleaned up his room a bit, then met his friends down at the cafeteria for dinner. It was different without Kurt there with them, but Blaine figured he would be back on his feet by Monday.
After eating, he dropped in again to make sure Kurt was still okay. He was finally awake again, even though he still seemed a bit tired and groggy.
"How long did I sleep?" he asked, his voice hoarse. Blaine was sitting on the edge of Kurt's tiny little twin bed, helping him hold his water bottle.
"I'm not sure," Blaine admitted as he set it back on his nightstand. "I just came in once after class. Everyone just ate dinner, though. Do you want me to bring you some soup or something from the café a couple of miles away?"
Kurt shook his head and shivered a little. Blaine covered him up and helped him take his latest dose of Advil to help with his fever.
"You shouldn't be here," Kurt yawned. "You'll get sick, too."
Blaine sighed, sealing his fate that he probably would catch whatever was going around. If it were anyone else who was sick, Blaine wouldn't step foot in their rooms. But Kurt was different. Blaine wanted to take care of him, even though he knew what the price was.
"I'll be fine," he told him. "You focus on getting better. Were you planning on going home this weekend?"
Kurt shook his head slowly. Blaine could tell the medicine was already making him tired. He had been giving Kurt the nighttime Advil to help him sleep.
"I don't think I could make the drive," he confessed. He moved his head over to rest it in Blaine's lap. It surprised him, at first, that Kurt did that, but he welcomed it. Blaine moved his hand to Kurt's back while he fought to stay awake, but eventually gave in.
Blaine couldn't move much while Kurt was resting, but he woke up thirty minutes later, anyways. Normally the medicine he had given Kurt would make him sleep for hours, but Blaine could tell something was wrong.
Kurt sat up slowly, unaware for several seconds that Blaine was even there. But as his condition grew worse, he turned to Blaine.
"You're okay," Blaine told him. "You just fell asleep for a little bit. Do you need to throw up? There's a trashcan right here if you do."
Kurt clung to Blaine as he shivered violently. Blaine could tell his fever had definitely spiked since lunchtime, and once Kurt threw up, he slowly broke down and cried.
"It's okay," Blaine tried to tell him, but was unsure what to do or how to help him when he was like that. "I know your stomach hurts. Can I get you a drink?"
He had wrapped his arm around Kurt, who promptly leaned into him for relief. Blaine helped Kurt take a drink of water, checking the time on his phone as he did so.
6:44. I could have him home by nine if we left soon…
"Kurt, I need to run to my room for just a few minutes. I promise I'll be right back, so just finish your water and text me if you think you're going to throw up again," Blaine ordered.
Kurt nodded and leaned his head back against the wall, still clutching the trashcan in his lap.
Blaine left the door cracked as he walked one corridor over to his own room. His roommate had left for the weekend, just like Blaine and Kurt were about to. Blaine grabbed his North Face and tied his dirty black Nikes carelessly. He didn't care about making an impression on Kurt's parents as much as he did about just getting him home and in his own bed.
Once he made it back to Kurt's room, only to find that Kurt had thrown up two more times, he cleaned him up and helped him get shoes and a sweatshirt on.
"Blaine, I don't wanna drive home," he whined, slouching forward as he sat on the edge of his bed. Blaine stood him up and held onto his arm to keep him upright.
"You're not," Blaine said. "I'm gonna take you home. Come on, my car isn't very far away. Do you want to take a blanket? You could lie down."
"No," Kurt mumbled, leaning on Blaine and continuing to shiver. "It's too far. I don't want to use up all of your gas."
"Kurt, it's fine," Blaine insisted. He just wanted to help him feel better any way he could. "Come on." Blaine held onto him as they walked outside together. The air was frigid, and the wind made it even worse. Blaine was fine under his coat, but Kurt could hardly move from how hard he was shivering. They had to stop once for Kurt to be sick again, even though Blaine was certain there couldn't be anything left in his system.
"Keep going," he coaxed, unzipping his coat and draping it over Kurt's shoulders to try to help warm him. It didn't do much, but it helped at least until they got to the car.
"You can lie down in the back or sit in the front with me," Blaine offered. "It'll be about two hours until we get there."
"I want to sit by you," Kurt admitted, laying his head on Blaine's shoulder as Blaine unlocked the doors.
"There you go," Blaine said, easing Kurt down onto the seat. "Buckle up and I'll turn some heat on." He walked around to the driver's side and immediately turned on the heat for him. Kurt looked even worse in the dim overhead lighting of the Prius, but Blaine tried not to think about how sick he was.
"Thanks for doing this," Kurt peeped quietly as Blaine pulled out of his parking space and exited the campus. "You didn't have to, though, you know."
"I know," Blaine replied, flicking on his turn signal as they turned onto the road by the highway. "I wanted to, though. You seemed miserable all day. I think you'll feel better once you're home. Oh, text your dad and tell him we're on our way. Then you can go to sleep."
Kurt obeyed, his iPhone screen illuminating the car as he did so. Blaine stayed focused on driving, stealing a glance over at Kurt every few miles, who was quickly dozing. Blaine hesitantly reached over and took hold of his hand, just to warm up his ice-cold fingers.
He held Kurt's hand for the remainder of the drive, even after Kurt woke up once they exited in Lima.
"Hey, we're almost there," Blaine told him. "How do you feel?"
"My stomach hurts." Kurt's voice was weak, but managed to get the words out. "Turn right up here. My neighborhood's on the left."
"Tell your parents that we're here," Blaine said, following Kurt's directions. "Are they home?"
"Yeah," Kurt murmured. He still sounded exhausted, and Blaine knew he had done the right thing. Kurt directed him through the dark, quiet streets until Blaine finally pulled into his driveway.
"Come in with me," Kurt said, managing to get out on his own. Blaine locked his car and walked him up to the porch, where Finn opened the door for them.
Blaine had met Finn, but not Kurt's parents. Kurt had already told him about his mom dying and dad remarrying, and the whole deal with Finn, so Blaine knew what to expect.
"Hey, bro," Finn said, moving so Kurt could stumble inside on his own. Blaine followed hesitantly, and Finn led them to the stairs. "Your dad left to get you some medicine. My mom's up in your room. She just washed your sheets so they're all warm from the dryer."
Kurt smiled a little, but Blaine could see it on his face how tired he was. He kept his arm around Kurt until they reached his room, when he broke away to greet his stepmother.
"Hi, sweetheart," the woman who must be Carole said, hugging him and rubbing his back. "I'm so sorry you're sick, honey. Change into some clean pajamas, and I already made you some hot tea. Blaine, would you like to come help me?"
Blaine was a little surprised she knew his name. Did Kurt ever talk about him? Nevertheless, he followed her back down the stairs and into the kitchen.
"Thank you for bringing him all the way home," she said gratefully as she poured Kurt his drink. "I know Kurt appreciates it, too. He really likes you, you know."
Blaine felt his cheeks grow red. What was he supposed to say to that?
"I-I like him a lot, too," he stammered, afraid of looking awkward. "Everyone at Dalton does."
Carole smiled and opened up the pantry. "We can pay you back for the gas you used to get up here. And don't even think about driving back down there tonight. You can stay here for the night and go back tomorrow. We have a spare room next to Finn's, upstairs."
"Well, thanks," Blaine said. "You don't need to pay me back, though. It wasn't a problem. He was feeling pretty bad all day."
Carole arranged a few crackers on a plate for Kurt, and Blaine offered to carry that and the tea for her. He was secretly glad she wouldn't let him leave- he was quickly growing too tired to drive. And he didn't want to be apart from Kurt for the whole weekend, whether he was sick or not.
Upstairs, Kurt was already in his bed in the dark, curled up and trying to sleep.
"Honey, stay awake for just a little longer," Carole coaxed, sitting on the edge of his bed. "Here, here's your tea. I got you some crackers, too. Your dad will be back in just a little bit. He ran to CVS when you said you were just about home. Can you sit up?"
Kurt sat up on his own, but had Blaine come sit next to him while he sipped at his tea. Carole left to finish more laundry, so the two of them were by themselves.
"Carole won't let me go back to Dalton tonight," he explained to Kurt. "I'm gonna sleep in the guest bedroom."
"My bed's big enough for two," Kurt offered. Blaine was tempted to take him up on his offer, but decided against it.
"I'll see you tomorrow," Blaine said. "You need to get some rest, anyways. Maybe I can stay with you until you go to sleep, though."
Kurt curled up closer against Blaine and closed his eyes. Blaine could feel his body heat radiating, but held Kurt close despite how warm he was.
They sat until Kurt's dad got home minutes later. Kurt was trying to sleep, but held his head up when he heard his dad coming up the stairs.
Blaine had seen a picture of Kurt's dad, so he knew what he looked like, but meeting him was very different.
"Hey, bud," he said, taking off his baseball cap and walking over to his son. "You're sick, huh?"
"I guess," Kurt mumbled, leaning back against Blaine. "Blaine brought me home."
"I know. That was very nice of him." Blaine tried to speak up to introduce himself to Kurt's dad, but he was cut off. "I'll be right back, kiddo. I can't figure out how to open this damn lid."
And just like that he was gone, and Kurt looked up at Blaine. "Well, that's my dad."
"He seems nice," Blaine said. "I like Carole, too. She seems like she takes good care of you."
"Yeah," Kurt sighed. He held his eyes open until Carole came in to give him his Pepto-Bismol, and then she rearranged his pillows for him so he could lie down.
"Can Blaine stay until I go to sleep?" Kurt asked as Carole was about to turn off his lamp.
"You'll see Blaine in the morning," she reminded him. "You need to rest, and I'm sure he's tired, too. If you need anything at all, come get your dad or me. Your stomach should feel better soon, honey."
"Thanks, Carole," he murmured. She turned off the light walked out, and once Blaine had said goodnight to him, he joined her outside the door.
"Here, honey, you'll be sleeping down here," she told him, steering him down the hall. Blaine wished he could've stayed with Kurt longer, but was just relieved he would finally be able to start feeling better.
"I gave you a pair of Kurt's pajamas. Finn's would've been way too big. The bathroom is the door in between Kurt and Finn's room. If you get thirsty overnight there's water downstairs in the fridge," she continued. "Thanks again for driving all the way up here."
"It wasn't a problem," Blaine assured her. "Thanks for letting me stay the night."
Carole left Blaine alone, and he changed before crawling into the foreign bed. It felt weird wearing clothes that belonged to Kurt. But, he was too tired to dwell on it. Kurt was home and happy, and that was all that mattered to him.
Blaine woke up twice in the night. Once to use the bathroom, and the second time because Kurt had gotten sick and was upset and still feeling miserable. Blaine stayed with him that time, and let Kurt sleep with his head on his shoulder. Blaine had never seen Kurt quite like that before- open and vulnerable and dependent on Blaine for comfort. He knew Kurt lived behind a wall that only certain people could penetrate, but Blaine could only hope that he was finally breaking through to see the real Kurt, willing to love him unconditionally.
Author's Notes:
I love early Klaine (basically season 2) so so so much. To me this chapter took place in between the Gap Attack episode (212) and Blame It on the Alcohol (214.) I hate to think that the first time Blaine met Burt was when he was hungover and sleeping in Kurt's bed.
But yeah, season 2 Klaine is definitely my fav. I just love everything about how their feelings for each other unfold, which I tried to kinda capture in this chapter. Maybe it worked, maybe it didn't. Anyways.