Day 6 – This Is the Time (Billy Joel)
A/N: This prompt is set within my "A Hero's Hero" verse. If you haven't read it, the gist is this: Blaine is Nightbird and meets Kurt, a regular guy who ends up saving the hero. TW for reference to minor injuries, but nothing graphic. This is set a bit in the future from the last installment, in case you're wondering. I used a few lyrics of the song as a loose inspiration.
"Ow. Ow! Geez, Kurt. What are you using, acid?" Blaine complained.
Kurt bit back a snicker. "Oh, calm down, you big baby. It's just a little alcohol. Now sit still and let me clean these cuts."
Blaine pouted, but settled in his chair. "I'm not a baby," he grumbled.
"No, no you are not," Kurt countered, dabbing at Blaine's knuckle gently. "You're a grown man who decided to go through a plate glass window instead of using a door."
Blaine winced as Kurt touched a particularly tender spot. "I couldn't go through the door. The police were watching it. Plus, the guy inside was expecting someone to enter that way. What he wasn't expecting was me to come through the window. It gave me the advantage of the element of surprise."
Kurt hummed, keeping his concentration on his work. "Surprise, yes. It also gave you a variety of cuts and scrapes, and what is probably going to be a nice bruise," he added, inspecting Blaine's shoulder. "Seriously, though, how did you survive before I came into your life?" Kurt teased.
"It was some kind of miracle," Blaine deadpanned.
The air grew heavy for a second, as it sometimes did. Kurt had grown accustomed to these types of evenings. Fortunately, his job as a freelance fashion writer afforded him some flexibility with his schedule. He was a night owl by nature, and if writing at all hours meant that he was awake when Blaine came home from a rescue and Kurt was able to see immediately with his own eyes that he was safe and sound, even better.
Kurt stood, gathering the bandage wrappers and other trash from the table. "Go on over to the couch and get cozy. I'll bring you and ice pack and some hot chocolate."
Moments later, Kurt joined Blaine on the couch, settling the ice pack on his shoulder, handing him a mug of cocoa, and slipping under the fuzzy blanket next to him. Blaine murmured his thanks, punctuating it with a kiss to Kurt's temple.
"I think I'm a horrible person," Kurt blurted out of nowhere.
Blaine, who had been leaning against Kurt's shoulder, sat upright. "What? Why would you say that?"
Kurt looked down, fiddling with his own mug. Blaine took it from him carefully and placed both of their cups on the coffee table, then sat back again. Before he could do it himself, Kurt reached over him to grab the ice pack that had fallen down and tucked it between Blaine's shoulder and the couch cushion once more.
"You know what this reminds me of?" Kurt asked, ignoring Blaine's last question. Met with silence and an inquiring eye, he continued, "It's like the night we met. You were right here on this couch, with this exact ice pack on your shoulder, I think."
Blaine smiled fondly. "Best night of my life."
"Mine too – and that's my problem," Kurt sighed. "I don't like you getting hurt," he said emphatically. "I hate it. I hate anything that brings you pain. But…" he trailed off helplessly.
He didn't have to finish, however. Blaine got there on his own. "You like taking care of me," he supplied. Kurt nodded – well as best he could with his head hung low. Blaine reached out a bandaged hand and touched underneath Kurt's chin to lift his head. "Hey, look at me. I love that you take care of me. In my line of work, things like this are going to happen. I'm not a comic book character, Kurt. I'm not Superman. I'm an ordinary man, trying to do his best to help, and sometimes I get hurt."
He wiped a solitary tear from Kurt's cheek before going on. "But having you to come home to? That's the best thing in the world. I could take care of myself, sure. I did it before. But I don't have to anymore, and that's all because I met the most amazing man in the world who, for some unknown reason, loves me as much as I love him. We're in this crazy life together, Kurt. That's what this means," he lifted Kurt's left hand to his lips and kissed the shiny metal band that rested on his third finger.
Kurt let out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a cry, and launched himself forward into his husband's arms. The hug was short-lived, though, as Blaine couldn't hold in a yelp when his sore shoulder was jostled.
Kurt apologized, got Blaine situated again, and took his place next to him to cuddle for a while. Their lives may be filled with wild and crazy adventures and misadventures, but right now? Right here? Snuggled next to his one true love? This is the time he'd always remember.
A/N: I'm like the Rumplestiltskin of fanfiction, but instead of spinning straw into gold, I spin angsty songs into crazy fluffy stories. You're welcome. And if you have not, in fact, read "A Hero's Hero," I cordially invite you to check it out!