As always,

Darrinia: Yeah, it hurt to kill Tina too, but in my defense I'll say I warned you all from the beginning that very important characters were going to die, and I guess Tina was one of them :) About Blaine being alright... I'm afraid I can't promise you anything. I mean, he was bellding and he fell from a terrace, if you know what I mean... Yes, apart from a cold I'm pretty much okay right now, thank you for worrying about me, you're the best! Thank you so much!

Misz: Hey, it didn't take me so long this time... Sorry for making you hate me ;) Thank you so much!

THEMoDePo: That's the beauty of cliffhangers! XD OMG, I can't believe you like the action, I have a feeling it's so wrong, so you made it all the better! :) Thank you so much!

Raiderva: That's right, it was obvious Tina was going to die sooner or later XD And yeah, I ahve to disagree with you, they're in the middle of a zombieapocalypse but they're still people, they're bound to hesitate, especially if they're fighgting with people and not walkers. Blaine was not broken, don't worry. At least not from the fall... ;) Thank you so much!

Midlifecrissis: Then I'm glad I already promised I wouldn't kill Blam, because I don't want you to hate me :) Really? You got caught in the action? Wow, thanks for telling me that, it's hard for me to believe it! Yeah, I love to use Puck to keep Sam's feet on the ground, he really needs someone like that when Blaine is not around. And yes, the same with Seb and Blaine, of course. Those two are my favorite pairs of bros! Yes, Blaine is going to be pretty much of a mess, but I don't want to spoil you anything. I'm still a bit busy this week, but apart from a cold I'm feeling better already so yes, I can write, write, write and look! New chapter! :) Thank you so much!

Me-me157: I kind of figured it was you (as your reviews are always to thoughtful and long) but thanks for letting me know anyway! Yes, Mike is going to need help, though he won't be the only one, if you know what I mean... And yes, neither Blaine and Sam can conceive a life without the other, so they will do whatever is necessary to make sure it remains that way. Sorry, no time for comfort in a battle like that, even if they both killed someone to save the other :) Thank you so much, dear!

A/N: Well, that one came out sooner than expected! Enjoy! :)

CHAPTER 18

Sam felt as if a giant fist was squeezing his heart as he saw Blaine disappear off the edge of the building, injured and covered with blood and… bitten. The walker had gotten him and bitten him on the shoulder, judging by the blood falling down his chest before he fell. But Puck had killed that monster just after that, so if Blaine had survived the fall, that meant he could still be alive. Even if he was doomed… Sam was not going to let him die alone.

"Blaine!" Sam yelled as he tried to run towards him, but Puck anticipated his moves and stopped him before he could move.

"You can't help him now, we need to get out of here!" Puck urged him, as more and more walkers were making their way upstairs and it wouldn't be too long before they were surrounded.

"I have to get to him!" Sam immediately protested him, fighting against Puck's grip with all his forces.

"Sam, I'm not losing you for nothing! Blaine is gone, there is nothing you can do for him" Puck yelled at him, strongly shaking him to make him react, and only when Sam noticed the tears falling unnoticed on Puck's cheeks he started crying himself, even if he resisted himself to believe there was nothing he could do about the person he loved.

"I can't leave him there, Puck" Sam pleaded for his friend to understand, stopping his struggles to free himself, opting for convincing him instead. Because yeah, maybe there was nothing he could do to save Blaine after all, but… he couldn't leave him like that.

"Sam, he… will be one of them in no time. I don't want you to see it" Puck answered with a sob, and Sam understood he was only trying to protect him –and not just from the walkers.

"I need to make sure, Puck" Sam answered in a thin voice, trying very hard to keep his emotions at bay. "I can't just leave him there like that. He saved our lives"

Puck sighed in resignation, perfectly understanding Sam's need even if he didn't want to understand, and he let go of him to run towards the edge where Blaine had fallen from, following him a little more slowly as he raised his gun to protect both of them from any possible walkers getting too close.

The vision Sam got when he let himself fall on his stomach next to the edge to look down was one he was sure he was never going to forget: Blaine was lying on his side on the ground, eyes closed and skin too pale, as the walker lied only a couple of feet away from him, dead. His chest was covered with the blood falling from a wound on his shoulder Sam couldn't see because of his sweater, where the walker had bitten into him, and there was a puddle of blood forming around him already. At least it didn't seem like the fall had injured him further, as the trail of blood he had left on the containers beside him showed Sam they had probably cushioned the fall before he ended up on the floor. Where he was lying unmoving right now, with no signs of life from what Sam could see.

Sam covered his own mouth to keep himself from screaming, as an unstoppable flow of tears found its way down his cheeks even if his head kept shaking in negation. He couldn't accept it, it was not possible that he had just lost Blaine like that. It was not possible that Blaine had died saving his life after everything Sam had done to him in the last few days.

"Come on, Sam" Puck's devastated voice sounded near, and it wasn't until his hand was comfortingly gripping his shoulder that Sam realized his friend was laying next to him. "We need to get going"

But as hard as he tried, Sam couldn't move. He couldn't manage to move his legs to stand up nor was he able to move his gaze from Blaine's unmoving form. But wait, he was not unmoving! It was so weak, but his foot had moved, right?

"He moved!" Sam yelled, jumping on his knees in just on move. "Puck, did you see it? He moved! He is alive!"

"He might… have turned into… a walker already" Puck answered, feeling like the worst person ever for crushing his friend's hopes like that, but he knew he had to be the reasonable one for once.

"No, he would be on his feet already if that was the case or… doing that horrible noise they do" Sam contradicted him, furiously drying the tears on his cheeks as if ashamed he had fallen into despair when it was obvious there was still hope. "He's alive and hurt, Puck, I'm not leaving him there alone"

"He was still bitten, Sam" Puck insisted in a calm and patient voice, almost afraid of Sam's reaction but needing for him to understand. "He is sentenced anyway"

"I'm not leaving him there to die alone and devoured by those monsters, Puck" Sam answered, not even trying to convince Puck anymore because he was resolute about what he needed to do and didn't care about anybody else's opinion. "He doesn't deserve an end like that"

Puck, only worried about his friend, was about to protest when they noticed three or four walkers on the ground level starting to come closer to Blaine's body –one more proof that he was alive, as those monsters were very keen on eating him–. Knowing there was no more time to lose, Sam didn't hesitate anymore and sat on the edge of the building.

"Cover me!" he yelled as he didn't leave Puck any time to react before he jumped on the containers bellow and then jumped the rest of the way to the ground, where Blaine lay.

Sam heard some shots that indicated that Puck was already firing at the walkers getting dangerously close to them, but he couldn't focus his attention on anything that wasn't Blaine once he came to stand next to him. From a closer range it was more obvious than Blaine was alive, as his whole body was shaking with pain and his breathing was hard and labored. There was a layer of perspiration on his face already and his cheeks were flushed even above his pale skin. But he still looked as beautiful and perfect as ever to Sam's eyes, which quickly filled with tears again at the sight of his lover's suffering.

"Blaine" Sam whispered almost to himself as he knelt next to his friend, but as soon as he laid a hand on Blaine's chest, the latter, who still had a hint of consciousness on him, got frightened and started thrashing weakly to defend himself.

"Mmm" Blaine moaned, trying to fight whatever foe was trying to reach him in his pain-filled and confused mind, his survival instinct stronger than ever even if he could barely hold his hands up.

"It's me, love, it's just me" Sam whispered as he took a moment to run his fingers through the curls on Blaine's forehead, in a gesture so common to them, to calm him down, and the blond couldn't stop a sob when Blaine immediately stopped struggling, implicitly trusting him in spite of everything. "I'm going to get you out of here, okay?"

Of course Blaine didn't answer, but his face turned slightly towards Sam's hand, seeking a contact he so desperately needed. Unable to deny him anything, Sam cupped his cheek and bended over to kiss Blaine's forehead.

"I need you to help me, though, can you hold onto me?" Sam asked, softly and calmly so as not to scare the other boy any further, even if their situation was desperate and only Puck's aim was keeping them out of trouble.

Again Sam couldn't elicit a response from the injured boy, so very carefully he put his hand under Blaine's back and made him sit up even if he had to hold him up. He then took Blaine's arms and awkwardly put them around his own neck, and he thought he was going to cry with relief when he noticed Blaine somewhat closing them more strongly around it so he was holding onto him on his own accord, trusting him and using the last ounce of his strength to do what Sam had asked –and Sam thought he had no idea what he had done to deserve being loved by someone as perfect as Blaine–, incapable of denying him anything even in a situation like that.

"That's right, babe, you're doing so great" Sam shakily praised him as he got his other arm under Blaine's knees and finally stood up with Blaine in his arms, relieved at the knowledge that Blaine was still alive by the tight grip he was keeping around his neck, even if his head had fallen on his shoulder. "Hang on, alright? For me"

Sam's heart skipped a beat when he heard a thud behind him and immediately held Blaine closer to him to protect him, but he was immensely relieved to discover it was only Puck, who had also jumped his way down to them after finishing off the few walkers threatening their safety.

"How is he?" Puck asked, gravely looking at the semiconscious boy lying on Sam's arms with no trace of hope in his eyes.

"Hanging on" Sam answered with evident pride in his voice for his friend's strength.

"I saw those bastards leaving with everything they could carry from up there, at least some of them" Puck explained, following Sam as the latter started walking to get Blaine inside.

"Then we can go back inside" Sam answered gravely. "I don't want Blaine out here in the cold longer than necessary"

"Sam, we're not sure there will be no more of them inside, and Blaine is not…" Puck tried to make his friend understand nothing he did was going to change his fate, but the blond boy rudely cut him off.

"I don't want hear it" Sam interrupted him in an angry tone as he increased the speed of his walking. "You can come with us or stay here, that's up to you"

Of course Puck didn't think there was a decision to make, as he couldn't let Sam go inside alone, especially considering his hands were occupied with the precious burden he was carrying. He didn't think there was anything they could do for Blaine –they all knew what a bite meant–, but he also knew Sam was not going to accept it so easily. He had been upset enough when it was Tina, so just to think about losing Blaine… He needed to be there for him because he really was going to need a friend when the time came.

On their way to the block's door they met with Sebastian, who was just helping Trent to his feet once they had also realized that those men were not a threat anymore –though walkers still were, and they needed to hide–. The drastic change on Sebastian's and Trent's mildly happy expressions at having survived when they saw Blaine's bloody figure being carried in Sam's arms would have been comical if not for the drama of the situation.

"Blaine!" Sebastian yelled as he let go of Trent for a second to go see for himself that Blaine was still alive, but Sam was already gone before he could reach him so he quickly turned to Puck. "What happened to him?"

"He was bitten" Puck answered gravely –after all, he knew Sebastian was also pretty close to the petite boy– as he ran behind the other two, covering them.

"No" Sebastian exclaimed as tears instantly started forming in his eyes and he almost didn't acknowledge Trent's hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Seb" Trent said, even if his own heart was breaking at the reality of losing a dear friend like Blaine.

"I shouldn't have let him go alone" Sebastian lamented as he let himself fall on his knees, devastated at the idea of never hearing Blaine's dorky contagious laughter again.

"No, Seb" Trent immediately contradicted him, squeezing his shoulder more strongly in a poor attempt of comfort. "You know as well as I do that nothing or no one would have been able to stop him. He was a stubborn little guy"

"Is, Trent" Sebastian corrected him with a new found determination on his voice as he stood to follow the others. "He's still alive"

"You're right" Trent reluctantly agreed, not having the heart to remind his friend that Blaine wouldn't be alive for much longer. "Let's go with them"

Sam would have liked to take Blaine to their sacred little cell where they have lived so much together, the only home they had known since the whole apocalypse started –if he had to die, at least Sam would have liked for him to do it in a place that had meant so much to them–, but due to the locked doors at the corridor that was not even an option. So his thought turned to the common room instead, so he could comfortably lay Blaine down on the small couch there.

When he entered the building through the entrance area that was practically reduced to ashes, Sam couldn't help a small sob escaping from his throat at the sight: everything was destroyed, there were some walkers wandering around the place –that first Puck and the Sebastian rushed to make disappear– and Joe's body was still laying there, with the bullet hole on his forehead that Sam had made himself. Breathing deeply a couple of times to stop the nausea, he decided to ignore everything that wasn't the still warm body on his hands and rushed to the common room.

It was obvious those men had been there too by the way that everything seemed to be out of place, as if they had been searching for something, but at least it wasn't so disturbing to look at. At least all the walls in it were still standing and there were no corpses in it. Without a second thought, he crossed the room and carefully let Blaine's body to lie on the couch.

"You can let go now, babe" Sam sweetly said as he gently disentangled Blaine's arms from his neck and got him as comfortable as he could manage while kneeling at his side, trying not to think about how he was missing the contact already.

Puck's presence behind him surprised Sam when the older boy rested his hand on his shoulder.

"I can… do it for you, you know" Puck offered in spite of his own pain, not wanting to put into words what they both knew needed to be done.

"No, I will do it" Sam serenely answered, his eyes never leaving Blaine's face while his hand moved to Blaine's soft curls again on its own accord.

"Sam…" Puck tried again, wanting to spare Sam from the horror of having to kill someone so dear to him.

"Leave us alone, please" Sam begged in the same unemotional voice from before, his hand never stopping the comforting motion on the top of Blaine's head.

"But Sam, you know we need…" Puck insisted.

"Puck, for God's sake, just give me a minute with him!" Sam yelled in rage, turning to look at Puck for a second to reinforce his words with a furious glance before turning to the injured boy again.

"Alright" Puck finally relented, not offended at all by Sam's sudden outburst. "I'll be right at the door, making sure no walkers get here" he said with a last squeeze to Sam's shoulder, but before he went he left one of his weapons on the couch next to Blaine's feet. "I'll leave this here for… you know"

Sam waited until Puck was out of the room to start talking. There were so many things he needed to say to his lover before he… while he was still alive. He didn't know if Blaine could even hear him, and he positively knew it was too late for him to tell him some of those things, but… he still needed to talk.

"B?" he whispered, bending down so his voice could reach Blaine's ear better. "Can you hear me?"

Blaine didn't show any response to Sam's voice, and if it wasn't for his labored breathing, Sam would have feared he was already gone. But he wasn't yet, and Sam needed to open his heart to him even if he wasn't sure he was going to hear him.

Wanting to hold Blaine's hand in his, he went for it and noticed how it was bloody and full of little cuts and scratches, just like the other one was too. He took one of Blaine's wrist instead and examined it carefully, trying to guess how Blaine had injured his hands like that.

"What happened to your hands, B?" he asked, not waiting for an answer before he continued talking. "Knowing you, I wouldn't be surprised if you had just dug your way out of that place with your own hands. You did, didn't you?"

Sam turned around and looked around the place for a second, trying to find something to take care of Blaine's hands. He knew it was ridiculous, given as Blaine would… But anyway, it felt like the last thing he could do for him, and it would make him feel better.

In the end he only managed to find some cloth and a practically empty water bottle in the kitchen, but that would do. He immediately came back to Blaine's side and took one of his hands in his to throw some water on the wounds, to proceed to very gently clean it with the cloth.

"I wish you weren't so stubborn and you hadn't found your way out of there" Sam said in a soft voice as he worked. "Not that I want to sound ungrateful, because you saved my life but… I wish you hadn't had to pay such a high price for that"

Sam's words were suddenly interrupted by a scream coming from outside the room, and his heart broke when he noticed it was Mike, crying in agony and desperation. Sam guessed the others had also seen the shooters going away and were making their way back to the block –at least the ones that were still alive–, and someone, probably Puck, had informed Mike of Tina's death.

His heart going out for his friend, though deeply relating to his pain because of his own situation, Sam broke down in sobs as he stopped pretending he was helping Blaine with his hands and gently put his arm under him so he could lift him slightly and hold him to his chest, wanting to remember how it was to have Blaine's warm body in his arms while he still could, not caring about how he was getting covered with Blaine's blood himself.

"I'm so sorry, Blaine" he sobbed while he devotedly caressed the curls falling on the back of Blaine's neck as he held his head to his own shoulder. "This is all my fault. If I hadn't pushed you away from my side we would have been together as always and none of this would have happened. Please, forgive me"

Sam would have given anything to be sure that Blaine was hearing him, that he was understanding what he was being said, and that he forgave Sam for everything he had put him through. But come on, this was Blaine, of course he would forgive him. He had the biggest heart ever and there was nothing he wouldn't do for Sam, the latter very well knew that. And that was exactly what had taken them to their situation they were now.

"I know I don't have the right to ask you anything after what I did to you, but please, can you maybe do a miracle and… stay with me?" Sam continued, hardly able to speak because of the sobs shaking his whole body at the mere idea of losing Blaine forever and having to go on without him. "I can't lose you, B. I love you" he finally admitted, hating himself for waiting to do until it was too late for Blaine to hear it.

A few more minutes passed before Sam was able to control his sobs, in which he never let go of the smaller boy lying unconscious in his arms. Sam knew what he had to do: he would never let Blaine turn into a walker. He would do anything to keep Blaine from being one of those monsters, as he knew Blaine would want. Including putting a bullet in his brain, as Puck had hinted when he left that gun next to Blaine's feet. It would be the hardest thing he had ever done, but he was not going to delegate that task into someone else: Blaine had done everything for him, and he was going to do that for him.

Almost unable to see clearly through his tears, Sam finally let go of the boy he loved and left him to rest on the sofa again to pick the gun into his hands. He took a moment to look into Blaine's face, so peaceful that it almost seemed as if he was just sleeping. And so beautiful… Sam drove one of his bloodied hands to cup Blaine's cheek and bended over to press his lips on the latter's forehead in a long kiss.

"Goodbye, love" Sam said against Blaine's skin before he sighed as deeply as he could and straightened up to do what he had to do.

He took the gun more firmly in his hands and carefully aimed it at Blaine's forehead, willing himself to pull the trigger as quickly as possible and finish both their suffering as soon as possible. But before he could bring himself to do it, something caught his attention and he threw the gun to the floor, as if it suddenly burned, while his hands moved to Blaine's sweater. If that walker had bitten him, how the hell was the sweater practically intact? Why did it only have the smallest hole instead of being ripped into pieces?

His hands trembling with anticipation, Sam moved the piece of clothing to the side, so he could see Blaine's wound for the first time. But it wasn't there. His shoulder should be a mess with a bite big enough to make him bleed like that, right? What the hell was happening?

Careful so as not to inflict any kind of pain on his lover, Sam moved the sweater even further to the side and it was then when he saw it: a small but angry looking hole on the far side of his shoulder, still bleeding profusely. A bullet wound.

"Blaine…" he whispered as he once again cupped Blaine's cheek in his hand and joined their foreheads together for a second as he tried to control his emotions.

Blaine had not been bitten. He was not doomed.

"He was not bitten!" Sam yelled at the top of his lungs as he let go of Blaine and ran to the door, needing for everyone to know the boy he loved was not going to turn into a walker. "He's not going to be one of them, you hear me? He's unconscious because he was shot!"

He didn't wait to see the impact his words had on all the others as he turned around and ran to Blaine's side again, but he could hear their exclamations of surprise and joy, as well as their footsteps as they also made their way to them.

"He's in a very critic condition" Mike said as he knelt at Sam's side to check on the injured boy. "We need to hurry if we want to save him"

Sam looked at his friend in astonishment, marveled at his strength of character: he hadn't even taken the time to dry the tears still on his cheeks after losing the girl he had loved for years and he was already focusing on saving Blaine's life. Of course Sam was grateful for him, because Mike was the only one of them with the slightest notion at medicine, but still…

"Mike…" Sam started, wanting to tell him thank you, to ask him for his forgiveness that he hadn't been able to help Tina, to tell him that he would understand if he needed a moment for himself. But Mike didn't want to hear any of that.

"Let's just focus on saving Blaine now, okay?" Mike answered, letting Sam know he understood everything he wanted to say, before he turned around to all the others gathered around them. "I need all the medical supplies you can find: bandages, water, alcohol to clean the wound… anything"

"They took everything" Artie answered with a desolated sigh.

"Not everything" Sam intervened, thinking about his backpack full of bandages lying on his bed, back in his cell. "Seb, how did you and Blaine get out of the cells area?"

"We climbed through a hole that broke on the wall with the explosions" Sebastian explained, also erasing the tears from his cheeks at the possibility of not losing his best friend just yet.

"Do you think you could climb back in?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, if they help me" Sebastian answered with no hesitation, as no stupid wall was going to keep him from doing whatever he could to save his friend's life.

"We'll help you" Jake immediately intervened, and Puck nodded vigorously at his side.

"There is a backpack in my cell with a whole lot of bandages in it" Sam explained, before he suddenly remembered about something else that could turn very useful in the absence of alcohol. "And there is also a half-full bottle of vodka behind Blaine's bed that we can use to clean the wound, right?"

"Right" Mike answered in relief. "Go get all that as fast as you can, guys, we don't have a lot of time"

The three boys didn't need to be told twice as they ran outside to climb through the hole Blaine and Sebastian had used previously to escape their imprisonment, Unique and Marley going after them just in case they could use some help.

Meanwhile someone produced some scissors that Mike used to cut Blaine's sweater open, as simply getting it off him would imply too much movement of his shoulder and they didn't want to risk a greater bleeding, now that it was finally starting to decrease.

"Sam, lift him up for a moment" Mike ordered him in a gentle voice while moving to Blaine's back so he could take a look.

Sam didn't know what Mike was looking for, but he trusted him a hundred per cent, so very carefully he put his arm under Blaine's upper body and sat him up, so Mike could take a look at whatever he was looking for.

"Finally some good luck" Mike said after a minute with the smallest smile in his face.

"What?" Sam asked with curiosity as he let Blaine's weight rest against his chest, glad for the warmth and security it provided.

"See this hole on the back of his shoulder?" Mike said, pointing at another wound Sam hadn't seen until that moment. "That's an exit wound. That means the bullet went right through him. At least we won't have to get it out of him, that would have been very tricky"

Sam released a shaky sigh before he could stop himself. That sounded like good news indeed, even if he hadn't thought to check until then. He held Blaine more strongly to him as Mike pressed some cloth to the back of Blaine's shoulder, to stop the bleeding there. If Blaine made it after such a trauma, he surely was going to be very weak for a while, after losing so much blood. But that was okay, Sam would be his strength while he needed it.

"What happened to his hands?" Trent asked from his chair, where Sebastian had left him after accompanying him there because of his injured ankle.

"I don't know" Sam answered with a shrug of his shoulders as he loosely picked one of Blaine's hands in his, careful not to hurt it. "But I already took care of them"

"I bet he hurt them doing something anybody else would have considered impossible" Sugar commented with a fondness in her voice to which Sam could only smile in agreement.

It was not much later when Sebastian ran back into the room, followed by the others, with Sam's backpack, the vodka, sheets, clothes and everything he had thought could turn useful. He carefully left it all next to the couch and waited impatiently for Mike to start doing whatever was needed.

"Please, guys, I would appreciate it if you left us alone for a while" Mike seriously suggested, turning around to look at all the youngsters surrounding them. "I will work better without an audience, and Blaine deserves some privacy"

"But you might need…" Sebastian tried to protest, not ready to lose sight of his friend just yet.

"Sam will help me" Mike interrupted him before he could finish, cutting any possible arguments from anyone –except for Sam, who he knew it would be literally impossible to send away so he didn't even try.

Everybody reluctantly obeyed –even Sebastian, who fondly patted Blaine's calf before moving away from him–, knowing Mike's request made sense, and tried to find something useful to do: some of them kept watch on the common's room door, wanting to keep the people inside safe from any possible walkers; others went back to the hole on the wall so they could get inside the cells and gather all their belongings, as they were obviously not going to stay there once Blaine was taken care of. And others decided to start digging a couple of graves, as it was the only thing they could do for the late Joe and Tina.

Sam looked at Mike getting everything ready with apprehension, afraid of how painful the procedures were going to be for his beloved friend. He would gladly exchange places with him –both so Blaine wouldn't have to feel so much pain and as a punishment for how terribly he had been to him–, but as that was not possible, the only thing left for him was to be there for him. And he was not going to move an inch away from him until he was 100% alright, however long it took.

"Sam, why don't you hold him?" Mike requested when he noticed Sam's intent gaze on his hands, which were now holding the vodka bottle. "We need to clean his wound with alcohol and it's going to hurt like the devil"

Sam only nodded in agreement, even if his heart was breaking at the thought of holding Blaine down as even more pain was inflicted on him. But he knew it was the only thing they could do, so very carefully he lifted Blaine's upper body again and this time he sat on the sofa behind him so he could hold him strongly to his chest, and maybe offer some kind of comfort at the same time.

"B, we're going to clean your wound now" he explained even if he didn't know if Blaine could hear him in his state. "It's going to hurt, but I'm here, ok? I'll be holding you and it will be over before you know"

"Ready?" Mike asked, holding the bottle just inches away from Blaine's front and most dangerous wound.

"No" Sam answered in complete honesty, shaking as he was with anticipation. "But go ahead"

Mike didn't need to be told twice and before any of them could lose the resolve to do it, he poured a generous amount of the liquor on the wound on Blaine's shoulder, hoping it would be enough to keep infection at bay. As soon as the liquid touched his skin, Blaine tried to jump from his position, throwing an agonizing scream that directly resounded on Sam's heart, who just held onto him more strongly, trying to keep him from injuring himself even further.

"Schhhh, easy, babe" Sam whispered in his ear as he held Blaine's head to his own shoulder, trying for his voice to make its way past the pain and register in Blaine's brain to calm him down and let him know he was not alone. "I'm here, I've got you. Just a little bit more"

They needed to repeat the procedure with the wound on his back, and Sam managed to turn him around enough so Mike would have access to it, even if the shorter boy was thrashing with pain and moaning so pitifully that it brought tears to Sam's eyes.

Mike was quick again, and Blaine shouted again, though not as loud this time because of the decrease of his strength. There were tears in his eyes as he let his face hide in the crook of Sam's neck, and only the ferocious grip Sam was keeping on him –for comforting reasons now that he was not fighting anymore– was keeping him from falling back to the couch.

"That's it, sweetheart" Sam whispered as he kissed Blaine's temple and let his hand get lost in the mess of curls that was the back of his head. "You did great, I'm so proud of you"

Mike pretended not to see or hear Sam's demonstrations of affection for the smaller boy, feeling like an intruder in such an intimate moment. He had always thought that their relationship was very special, and much closer than what was considered normal for two best friends, but he had not understood the depth of it until now: it was very obvious Sam felt something very special for the other boy. And the way Blaine was curling on Sam's chest even if he was hardly conscious didn't leave much room for imagination either. He hoped he didn't have to see Sam losing the love of his life, like he had just done.

"We should bandage the wounds to avoid infection" Mike said after a prudent time so Sam could compose himself. "After that… it's up to him"

"Thanks, Mike" Sam honestly and emotionally said as he held Blaine upright for Mike to start bandaging his upper body.

"You don't have to thank me" Mike answered in a tired voice, glad he was working on Blaine so he didn't have to look at Sam, because he was sure he would break down if he got to see the pity he was sure he was going to find there.

"Mike, I'm…" Sam tried again to find the right words to say to his friend.

"Don't" Mike begged him to stop. "Please, I'm not ready for that yet"

"Ok" Sam obeyed, knowing Mike was quite an introvert person and he would need to deal with his emotions with himself first before he could even think of talking about them. And it was the least he could for him, especially after how he had forgotten about everything just to take care of Blaine.

"I know if there is someone here who can understand how I feel… that's you" Mike said, stopping his task for a second to finally look into Sam's eyes, letting him know he was very aware of his feelings for the curly-haired boy in his arms.

And, for the first time since his relationship with Blaine evolved into something else, Sam realized he didn't care that someone else knew about it. In fact, it felt good that their love was so obvious that could be seen and felt without even having to announce it. So he just nodded at Mike, grateful for his help and his words, and wanting him to know that he perfectly understood his pain, as he had been very close to losing Blaine himself.

"Let's just focus on saving Blaine, shall we?" Mike said, resuming his task of bandaging Blaine's wounds. "You know how much Tina adored him. It's the only thing I can do for her"

They finished bandaging Blaine in silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts about everything they had lost that night –and what they still could lose, as Blaine wasn't by any means out of the woods yet–, and only when he was sure he had done the best he can, Mike got on his feet and moved to the door to tell the others they could get in now.

Sebastian was the first one to appear, of course, anxious to get some information on Blaine's state and to see for himself that he was still alive.

"How is he?" Sebastian asked, looking alternatively between Mike and Sam, who was still holding Blaine in his arms, still not ready to let go of him.

"He is… alive" Mike answered gravely, making everybody understand with his statement that there hadn't been much for him to do, and it was only up to Blaine's strength.

"So he was not bitten, after all" Trent said, also very glad to see his friend still alive.

"No" Sam answered while looking down at the sleeping boy on his chest with the ghost of a smile. "I guess that bullet from the shooter on the roof finally hit him, after all. The walker was probably already dead when it fell on him. But he's not going to turn into one of them"

"Sam, he still…" Puck intervened, hating himself for it, but he couldn't let Sam fall into false hopes when the worst scenario was still a very real possibility.

"I don't wanna hear it" Sam angrily answered, squeezing Blaine's body more protectively against his chest as if in defiance.

"I'm sorry, but you need to accept that, even if he was not bitten, he will turn into one of them if he dies" Puck insisted, sounding harsher than he had wanted.

"Well, then we need to keep him alive, right?" Sam answered in a sarcastic tone, only restraining himself from yelling because he didn't want to disturb the injured boy in his arms. "Let's keep him warm. Seb, you said you brought our clothes?"

"Yes, I've got them right here, let me grab his other sweater…"

"No, get me my purple hoodie. It's bigger so it won't bother his bandage" Sam asked, not voicing the real reason for him to want to give it to Blaine: the fact that Blaine absolutely loved that hoodie and that Sam wanted him to wear something that was his so he would feel more protected if he were to wake up –and it would also make Sam feel better to see him in his clothes, to know they were still connected in some way.

Sam very carefully dressed Blaine in his hoodie with Sebastian's help and then refused to let go of him, feeling the need to feel him against his chest as he sat on the couch, holding him as if he was never going to let him go. He knew the others would understand that he missed the funeral because he couldn't bring himself to leave Blaine alone for even a few minutes, in case he awoke. He knew Mike understood.

But after the bodies had been buried and everybody had regained their composure and gathered their belongings, the time for leaving had come. And Sam's fears immediately grew again, making him refuse to move.

"We can't move him, he wouldn't make it" he said, not understanding how the others couldn't see something that was so obvious.

"We can't stay here, Sam, it's too dangerous" Artie patiently explained, looking sadly at Blaine's sleeping form and wondering if Sam would be right and the injured boy wouldn't make it –even if staying was not an option–. "The walkers can come and go as they please now, and who knows if the place won't fall down on us at any time"

"It's not even warm anymore" Brittany tried to make Sam understand, as with half the walls of the place destroyed, the walkers were not the only danger once night came and the cold accentuated to its fullest.

"I'm not moving him" Sam stubbornly refused again, letting his head rest on Blaine's as a way to make the others see he had no intention of changing his opinion.

"Sam, Blaine wouldn't want to put you…" Puck tried to say, but Sam had had enough of his negativity for the day and he didn't even let him finish.

"This is not about me!" he protested with rage. "I don't care if I'm putting myself in danger! I need to look after him, and I can't move him! I'm not risking his life on my benefit, you hear me? You can leave if you want, but I'm staying here with him"

"Sam!" Artie yelled at him, even moving his chair to the couch so he could grab onto Sam's arm and shake him out of his stubbornness. "We are not leaving without you both again, you hear me? We already made that mistake once. We'll help you take care of him. We'll keep him alive. Together"

Sam remained quiet for a second, as if weighing up their possibilities and what Artie had said. He didn't want to stay there either, he knew he was not an ideal solution by any means, but Blaine was too weak to travel, wasn't he?

"Mike?" Sam said, asking without words for his opinion and some guidance to help him make a decision.

"I can't guarantee you he will make it on the road, Sam" Mike lamented. "But I can't guarantee you he would make it here either. Just… let us help you, okay?"

"Alright" Sam finally relented, and he very carefully put his arms under Blaine's body and lifted him in his arms as he stood, carrying him in his arms just as he had done only a while ago, when he was sure he had already lost him.

"Do you need some help with him?" Puck offered, feeling bad he had argued with Sam more than once that day, even if he had only been trying to protect him.

"No, I've got him" Sam answered as he effortlessly carried the person he loved the most of the world towards the bus waiting for them outside –not ready to share his burden with anyone just yet.

"But Sam…" Puck insisted.

"I said I've got him" Sam answered shortly. "Pick up our things, if you want to help"

Puck hurried to obey and between him and Sebastian they took Sam's and Blaine's things to carry them next to their own, before they followed the others to the bus. They had no idea where they were going, or what the future held in store for them, but they knew the only way to make it was to stay together. And that's what they were going to do.

A/N: This is not the end by any means, even if i'm aware it kind of sounded like that ;)