The tawdry novel had managed to keep Kurt awake for the better part of an hour, until Terri's voice became tired and she had to stop reading. As she set the book aside, Kurt sighed. "I should move," he said, making no effort to actually do so.
"Are you comfortable?"
"Mm hm," he murmured lightly.
She pressed her head against his. "Then stay. I'm fine."
"'Kay," he agreed, obviously more than asleep than awake. Shifting his head to look out the window, he went quiet for a couple of minutes as they stared together at the whirl of white flakes blowing past. "I hope my dad is someplace safe. Wish I could call him. He worries about me a lot, even on normal days. He must be going out of his mind by now. "
The sadness in his voice tore at Terri's heart. She and Will might not be together anymore but at least she knew that he was safe at home, and he knew the same about her. "Sounds like you guys must be pretty close, hmm?"
The boy nodded against her shoulder. "It's been just the two of us ever since I was seven years old. We look out for each other."
Terri smiled. "I'll bet you do." She sighed wistfully. "Sometimes, I really miss having someone to look out for."
Kurt's eyes tilted up, trying to see her face. "Mr. Shue?"
"Yeah," she whispered. "We were really good for each other, once. Do you know he was the first person I even thought about calling when I needed help today? Partly, I recognized you as one of his show-choir kids and wanted to find out if he could help me figure out where you belonged, but mostly it was because . . ."
"You miss him?" he guessed, then nodded. "I understand. He's the kind of person another person would miss. I think that one day when I graduate high school and leave Lima behind, Mr. Shue is one of the people I'll miss most. Even though he never gives me any solos."
She laughed at the grumbled little end comment. "Let me guess. He gives them all to Finn, right?"
Kurt lifted his head, looking at her in surprise. "You know Finn?"
"He and his friend Noah worked at Sheet & Things for awhile last year. I was their supervisor."
"Oh . . . I forgot. How did you know Mr. Schuester gives all the songs to Finn? Did he tell you about that?"
He looked puzzled and Terri chuckled at the expression. "No, but I know Will. He's a very fair and good hearted man, but he's always had a weak spot for kids who remind him of himself. He wants every student to have as great a high school experience as the two of us did, but he can be a little blind sometimes."
The boy snorted before he could stop himself, looking a bit embarrassed when she fixed questioning eyes on his face. "Sorry. Let's just say . . . more than a little."
Terri was tempted to press for more, not because she really cared about all the ups and downs of high school but because this boy saw Will every day and it made her feel closer to her ex-husband to hear about his daily life. Then, Kurt laid his head back down tiredly and she decided to let it go.
It was difficult to say how much time passed while they sat together on the sofa, watching the weather and thinking private individual thoughts. Terri was musing about how nice this was, just the two of them all alone in the vast world of white, when Kurt spoke again.
"You'd have made a great mom."
Unable to stop herself, Terri gasped at the unexpected comment, feeling that pang of deep sorrow that overcame her every time she allowed herself to remember the hysterical pregnancy that had led her to such desperate and doomed measures last year.
Hearing the shocked sound, Kurt backed away from her, right hand clapping over his mouth as his cheeks flamed red. "I'm sorry!" he apologized. "I shouldn't have said that. I forgot."
Realizing that Kurt, and probably all the rest of his fellow Glee kids, were aware of the circumstances behind her and Will splitting up – probably inevitable what with Quinn Fabray being part of that group – Terri's cheeks turned equally red.
Still fumbling in the face of her awkward silence, Kurt tried again, "I just . . . I meant that you're really nice, and I like hanging out with you, and that sitting with you and listening to you read and all, kind of reminded me of a long time ago when my mother was still alive. She used to read me books all the time."
"Not the same kind of books, I assume," she teased, wanting to reassure him that he had not done anything wrong. Wanting to erase that dismayed expression and see him smile again.
Much to Terri's pleasure, the boy laughed. "Definitely not. I think 'Green Eggs and Ham' was more my speed back then." He sobered again, reaching out to clasp her hand. "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings. I didn't mean to."
"I know that," she said, a genuine smile blooming. The comment still hurt a little, but it was also unexpectedly reassuring to know that an injured boy, one who was in many ways a child still in need of love and care, had found her maternal side satisfactory. "In fact, you should know that I would have been very happy if the child Will and I wanted had turned out to be anything like you."
He ducked his head, embarrassed but clearly pleased. "Really?"
"Absolutely."
Both of them jumped when a vigorous knock suddenly sounded at the front door.
Kurt instantly perked up. "Maybe that's my dad!"
His eyes were so bright and hopeful that they brought a pang of bittersweet pain to Terri's heart. She had not even realized how lonely her life had become until today's unexpected event and it saddened her to realize that it would soon be at an end.
Secretly hoping that the visitor might turn out to be someone else, and feeling guilty for it, she rose. "I'll just go see who it is."
Another impatient knock sounded and Terri hurried to answer. "I'm coming!" she called out, a bit more sharply than necessary. When she opened the door, she frowned a little at the tall, stocky stranger wearing a snow-covered tan coat and a cap with ear-flaps whom she found on the other side. "Yes?"
Before he could answer, a joyful cry of, "Dad!" identified the visitor.
A beaming smile of relief instantly broke over the man's anxious features, making Terri feel even guiltier for her momentary lack of enthusiasm. "Oh, Mr. Hummel!" she cried out in feigned surprise. "I didn't realize. Please, come in!"
He pushed past her, barely waiting for the words to clear her lips. Kurt jumped up from the sofa, then abruptly turned ghost-pale and plopped back down again, squeezing his eyes shut against what looked like the mother of all dizzy-spells.
Burt Hummel turned a little pale as well. "Kurt!" Terri grabbed his arm, stopping his forward progress, and the man looked at her with rage in his blue eyes. "What the hell?"
"Sorry, it's just . . . he's been a little sick off and on today. I didn't want you to walk right into the line of fire if it happened again."
The worried father shook her off easily, uncaring of such a trifling danger as he moved to the sofa and sat down next to his son. He reached out, brushing his fingers through Kurt's messy brown hair with such tenderness that it melted Terri's heart. "Hey, buddy. You doin' okay?"
Kurt had taken an iron grip on the sofa cushion, clutching it with both hands as his throat convulsed in an effort to keep his stomach from erupting again.
"Deep breaths," his dad coached, fingers continuing their soothing stroke up and down the back of Kurt's head. "Nice and slow, through your nose. Just take it easy and breathe."
The boy obeyed and in a few seconds he had regained control of himself and his clenched eyelids fluttered open again.
"Dad," he breathed, such relief and happiness and love in that single word that tears welled up in both adults' eyes. Kurt abruptly threw his arms around his father's sturdy body, not caring one bit that the man was cold and damp with melting snow. He rested his head against that familiar broad shoulder and sighed, utter contentment filling his face as his father's arms wrapped around him in turn, holding him close.
"I was so worried about you, son. I didn't know where you were or what happened to you. Just knew that you were hurt. I found your truck, saw the blood . . . it about killed me." Burt pushed Kurt back a few inches, blinking against tears as he traced the bandage over his left eye and gently examined his bruised and wind-burned face.
"Don't cry, Dad," Kurt told him, brushing an errant tear off his father's cheek. "I'm okay now. Mrs. Shue took really good care of me. I'm fine."
Reminded that they were not alone, Burt turned to face the observing Terri. "Fine?" he said sharply. "What I saw a second ago sure as hell didn't look like fine. He tried to stand up and damn near fainted! Why didn't you take him to a hospital or call for an ambulance? He's got a head wound! He could have dropped dead in your living room and I never would have. . ."
The words choked off and Terri covered her mouth. "Oh! I know! I'm sorry! The phone was cutting out and I didn't know what to do, and I couldn't just leave him out in the storm, and I called Will and I tried to leave you a message but nobody answered, then the phone went dead completely! And he was confused and sick, and I was busy trying to help and, and, and . . . I'm sorry!"
She burst into tears, wrung out by the weather and the worry and the angry accusations that hit so close to the words she had been berating herself with internally all afternoon long.
"Dad!" Kurt cried out, startling his father with a hard, scolding punch to the shoulder. "What's the matter with you? She helped me!"
Burt looked from the weeping woman to his very much alive, and clearly outraged, son and his shoulders slumped.
"Hey, I'm sorry. I don't know what got into me, saying a thing like that when I really ought to be thanking you." He stood, abandoning his hold on Kurt with visible reluctance as he crossed to her side and awkwardly patted Terri's arm. "Seriously, thanks. It's a total mess out there. God only knows what might have happened if you'd tried to drive to the hospital from where you started, and it's probably better that you got my boy in out of the cold. Looks like you cleaned him up pretty good, too. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is that I overreacted just now and I'm sorry. It's just . . . it's been a hell of a day, y'know?"
To his obvious surprise, and her own, Terri laughed. "Tell me about it!"