A/N Glad so many people are loving this story! Thank you for all the favs, follows, and Reviews!
…
Kurt was excused from all his classes for the rest of the week, and only working half shifts at the dinner through the weekend. This meant that he was alone in the loft for large periods of time while Rachel was working or at rehearsals for Funny Girl, and Santana was working or out with Dani. He was supposed to be resting.
The problem with enforced rest is it makes you restless. He'd spent most of his day Tuesday baking; cookies, muffins, brownies, and even profiteroles lined every flat surface in the kitchen and dining areas. Wednesday he reorganized every shelf in the loft. By Thursday he was going stir crazy. When Blaine stopped by with lunch that afternoon, he found Kurt standing by the printer as page after page slid out of the coughing machine.
"Hey, sweetheart, what are you doing?" He asked the pale man.
"I'm printing up fliers for my new Madonna cover band." He handed his fiance one of the pale pink slips of paper.
"Pamela Landsbury?" Blaine said, reading the page.
"Yeah, it was Rachel's idea,sort of. More of a slip of the tongue, really."
"So, you are going to start a band? Isn't that kind of defeating the purpose of taking it easy?" Blaine said, kissing his cheek. "I mean, you already go to school full time and work at the diner. When are you going to have time for rehearsals? I just don't want you to wear yourself out, especially right now when you are already not at peak health."
Kurt sighed. He could hear the worry in the other man's voice. "I know, and that is why I am dropping two of my dance classes this semester. I can retake them next fall. I've already called the admissions' office and spoke to them."
"Won't that cause problems down the line?"
Kurt shrugged as he got plates and silverware. "It will delay my graduation by six months, but that's all, really."
They sat down to eat the manicotti and chicken parmigiana that Blaine had picked up from Kurt's favorite Italian bistro. "So, are you rehearsing with June this afternoon?"
Blaine almost choked on his chicken. "Uh, yeah, after my History of Music class. I'm hoping to finish hashing out your part in the showcase."
Kurt beamed at him. "Really? What are we going to sing?"
"Oh, It's a surprise. I'll let you know when I get everything worked out." Blaine didn't look at him as he spoke, but Kurt was too preoccupied cutting up his manicotti to notice.
…
Saturday afternoon, Kurt sat in one of NYADA's rehearsal rooms with Rachel and Santana, along with Dani, waiting for someone to show up for the auditions. He was getting more discouraged with each passing moment.
"Let's face it, Lady Lips," Santana said from where she was draped over the edge of the dais. "No one is coming."
"I'm sorry, Kurt," Rachel said, "but I think she's right. If they were going to come, they would have been here by now."
Kurt sighed in resignation. "You're right. I guess this just wasn't meant to be. I'm sorry I wasted your time."
She just smiled and hugged him. "Hey, don't worry about it. I still say it was a great idea. Maybe you should just wait for spring break and try again."
He was about to reply when there was a knock on the door. "Excuse me?" The voice was low key sexy, masculine, and Kurt thought he had heard it somewhere before. Shaking off a sudden sense of deja vu, he turned to look at the man standing there.
He was about six feet tall, but the top hat made him seem taller. It sat upon a head of dark brown hair that looked like he'd just rolled out of bed. And he hadn't been sleeping, either. He wore a steampunk tuxedo that accentuated his lean figure to perfection. His deep blue eyes were lined with kohl, and his sinful lips were turned up in a slightly arrogant smirk. Kurt couldn't seem to look away.
"Is this were the auditions for Pamela Landsbury are?"
Kurt tried to reply, but his mouth had gone dry, and his heart was racing. None of the girls seemed to notice Kurt's predicament, so focused on the man leaning casually against the doorway. It was Dani who answered.
"Yes, you are definitely in the right place." It was her voice that finally seemed to break Kurt out of his trance. He glanced at her, frowning. He knew his friend was a lesbian, so why did she sound so happy to see this guy? He noticed Rachel and Santana were both entranced by his appearance as well, and that made a shiver crawl up his spine.
"Good," The man said, never taking his eyes off Kurt as he moved into the room. "I'm Elliott Gilbert, but my stage name is Starchild."
"What are you going to sing?" Rachel asked, voice breathier than usual.
He grinned at her. "I've prepared an homage to one of my favorite artists, Mother Monster herself."
He took the stage as the music began, once again locking eyes with Kurt.
I'm gonna marry the night
I won't give up on my life
I'm a warrior queen
Live passionately, tonight
Kurt felt himself getting light headed, unable to look away from the man on the stage. His pulse raced, almost as fast as his thoughts. What was happening to him? Why was he acting so out of character? And why did this man seem familiar to him?
I'm gonna marry the dark
Gonna make love to the stark
I'm a soldier to my
Own emptiness, I'm a winner
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
He felt like his heart was going to pound out of his chest. Surely Rachel could hear it, sitting beside him as she was. Couldn't she tell he was in distress?
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the
I'm gonna marry the
I'm gonna marry the
I'm gonna marry the
He couldn't breath, he felt like he was drowning, but he could not break eye contact with the enigmatic man singing, those blue eyes drawing him in deeper and deeper.
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm not gonna cry anymore
I'm gonna marry the night
Leave nothin' on these streets to explore
M-m-m-marry, m-m-m-marry,
M-m-m-marry the night.
Oh, m-m-marry, m-m-m-marry,
M-m-m-marry the night.
I'm gonna lace up my boots
Throw on some leather and cruise
Down the street that I love
In my fishnet gloves, I'm a sinner
His skin felt too tight, every nerve over sensitized. He was sliding back in his chair, nearly boneless. Suddenly, light glinted off the ring on his left hand, winking up at him. He blinked, and an image of Blaine formed in his mind.
Then I'll go down to the bar
But I won't cry anymore
I'll hold my whiskey up high
Kiss the bartender twice, I'm a loser
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
I'm gonna marry the night
Kurt fought to keep the vision of his fiance in his mind, trying to stand up, but it felt like he was moving through quicksand. His vision dimmed, going gray around the edges.
I'm gonna marry the night
The night, the night
The night, the night
The world faded to black.
…
Elliott frowned as he watched the paramedics load Kurt into the ambulance. Some how, Kurt had broken his thrall, but that shouldn't have been possible. When the boy had collapsed, Elliott's instinct was to carry him off to his lair, but the three girls who had been with him prevented him from doing so.
The shorter girl with the prominent nose had called 911 immediately. He heard her mention something about anemia and blood not clotting properly. He frowned. That didn't sound right. Yeah, Elliott had taken his blood twice, but he hadn't taken that much. Kurt shouldn't have been more than a little more than a pint short. And he had been careful to seal the wounds when he had finished feeding.
Of course, Kurt had had that cut on his throat Sunday night. It had looked like he had nicked himself shaving. He had taken advantage of that to hide the bite mark, but he had definitely closed the wounds and healed the small cut. And why wasn't Kurt's blood clotting?
Before he could think any further on the matter, he heard a shout, and saw the three girl's turn towards the voice. He turned as well, and saw a short, dark haired man running towards the ambulance.
"Blaine," one of the girl's called out, and hugged the hazel eyed man, even as one of the other girls called out to the ambulance attendant.
"Hang on, his fiance is here. He'll want to ride with Kurt to the hospital."
So, this was Kurt's fiance. Elliott studied the man. He wore black jeans with a red button down. The black suspenders seemed unnecessary with the thin belt he wore. A black bow tie with red stripes and black loafers with no socks finished off the look. He had to admit, the guy did look like a 1950's teen idol, not what he had been expecting at all. And he seemed to be very upset about Kurt collapsing.
"What happened, Rachel?" He asked, slipping into the back of the ambulance with the petite girl, just before the door was closed.
That was a very good question, Elliott thought. What the hell was going on with Kurt Hummel?
…
Blaine couldn't believe he was sitting beside a hospital bed again so soon. Kurt had been getting stronger everyday, and his blood count had been much better at his follow up appointment on Friday. His blood had even started clotting again, although still not as much as it should. So why was the man he loved unconscious, and not responding to his voice or his touch?
When he'd gotten Santana's call earlier, June had been angry about him rushing off. He had just shouted something over his shoulder about Kurt collapsing, but she had still been upset, shouting that he needed to think about himself for a change. That had upset him, of course, but he didn't have time to dwell on it. He needed to be with Kurt.
Blaine looked up as Dr. Manuel entered the room. The doctor was looking down at a report, frowning, before he realized there was someone else in the room.
"Oh, Mr. Anderson, good you are here. Can you tell me, has Mr. Hummel mentioned anything about being bitten by an insect or animal in the last two weeks?"
"Bitten? Not that I'm aware of. Why? What is wrong with him?"
The doctor's frown deepened. "I just got the toxicology screening back on your fiance. They found traces of some kind of venom in his blood. They haven't been able to identify it yet. This is what is preventing the blood from clotting, but still does not account for the anemia. Nor does it explain how the venom got into his system in the first place. I'm going to have one of the nurses examine him thoroughly to see if there is any evidence of animal or insect bites."
Blaine frowned. "Surely Kurt would have felt it if he had been bitten by an animal."
The doctor shook his head. "Not necessarily. Certain animals, such as vampire bats, have a chemical in their saliva that prevents their host from feeling anything."
Blaine was confused. "Aren't bats mammals? I thought venom came from reptiles or insects."
"Usually, yes, but there are a few mammals that do produce venom, though none of them are indigenous to the US. Until we know for sure, I suggest we focus more on how than what. I'll send the nurse in to examine him. If there is no evidence of a bite, we may have to look into the possibility that it was ingested."
"You think Kurt ate something that was contaminated with the venom?"
"It's possible. There are always new trends in food here in New York, and certain delicacies, if not prepared properly, can make people ill. A few years ago there were several cases were people became sick, and even died, after eating improperly handled blow fish."
Blaine face drained of color. Died? Oh god! That couldn't happen to Kurt. And then another thought occurred to him. "Kurt is a college student who works at a diner. He doesn't have the kind of money to throw around on trendy foods. I think the most exotic thing he has eaten in the last six months was the pad thai from that place up the street from where he lives."
The doctor looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, for now lets check for the obvious sources first."