Kurt managed to lever himself to his feet but still wove a little as he moved over to join the two adults.
His father frowned, clearly concerned with the show of instability. "I think we'd better head over to the hospital and get you checked out before we go home," he said, staring at Kurt so intently that the boy squirmed in reaction.
"Do we have to?" Kurt groaned, leaning into the embracing arm that immediately wrapped around his shoulders. "You know all they'll do is make us sit in a waiting room forever, then ask me if I've been sick or dizzy today. When I say yes, they'll tell you that you should take me home, put me to bed and watch me closely for the next 24 to 48 hours for any signs of confusion or disorientation. What's the point?"
The way he rattled off the instructions in a bored, rote manner made Terri frown. "Does this kind of thing happen to you a lot?" she asked, addressing the question to Kurt but looking to his father for confirmation. "Earlier you told me that blood was almost impossible to get out of dress shirts and that bruising would fade in a few days."
She was glaring suspiciously at Burt, who glared back with a mixture of exasperation and irritation. "Don't even go there," he said shortly. "The poor kid gets bullied a lot."
"Why? Is it because he . . . likes romance novels?" she said carefully, not quite sure whether she should say the actual word in front of Kurt's very obviously blue-collar dad.
Burt looked a bit pained by her choice of words. "If that's some kind of weird new euphemism for bein' gay, then yeah, that's why."
"I'm gay, I'm a proud member of the least popular club in school, I'm about 50 IQ points smarter than the smartest one of them and I wear clothes made by designers most of them can't even pronounce," Kurt corrected; a trace of unmistakable smugness in his tone. "Take your pick."
Burt chuckled at his assessment and Terri felt great relief. It had seemed very unlikely that Kurt would be so happy to see a parent who did not treat him well, but she had felt the need to check. Over the course of just a few hours, she had started experiencing a strange protectiveness toward this very unusual teenager.
"I know how much you hate hospitals," Burt told his son, his steady gaze filled with both authority and a touch of pleading, "but I'd feel a hell of a lot better about things if you saw a doctor. Even if all they do is tell you to go home and rest."
"But then we'll have to fight our way home through the snow, in the dark and it'll be, like, midnight before I can actually sleep."
The whining was getting stronger with every word and Burt smiled as he hugged Kurt a little bit closer and kissed his bruised temple, not caring at all that the tender gesture drew a reflexive scowl from the teenager due to its undignified nature. "You're pretty worn out, aren't you?"
Kurt did not even try to deny it, nodding tiredly.
"Do it for your dad," Terri chimed in, sensing that Burt was teetering on the edge of giving in to Kurt's obvious exhaustion. Brushing her fingers over Kurt's jaw in a tender gesture that immediately eased its stubborn clenching, she added, "And for me. I'm really very worried about you, and I know that Will is worried, too."
"And Mercedes, Finn, Carole, Jesse . . . probably all the rest of your friends by now, too," Burt added, mercilessly heaping on the guilt. "They're all expecting an update. Are Mrs. Schuester and I supposed to tell everyone that you were too stubborn to see a doctor? They'll all think that we took really crappy care of you."
Kurt groaned, thumping his forehead against his father's shoulder. "God, okay fine, I'll go! Just stop, already!"
"That's my boy," Burt said with a chuckle, pale eyes shining with amusement as he nodded thanks to Terri over his son's shoulder. "It'll be over before you know it, and then we'll go home and you can sleep all you want to."
Terri returned his smile, feeling a warm moment of kinship. She studied Burt's face thoughtfully. He was a little rough around the edges, but seemed intelligent and kind; and he was really quite handsome. Not like Will, but definitely nice-looking in his own way. He was obviously an excellent father. Loving, accepting, clearly adored by his only son. He owned his own successful business and was anything but stingy with his money if Kurt's clothes and vehicle were anything to judge by.
A lonely and attractive widower, mature but far from old, with an almost grown child whom any woman might count herself lucky to have for a step-son . . .
A crinkle of confusion knit Burt's eyebrows as Terri continued to stare at him, a strange, mesmerized look in her huge blue eyes. Loosening his grip on Kurt, Burt took his hat off, wringing the cap between his hands in an instinctively nervous gesture.
As he did so, Terri gasped. She backed up a step, suddenly feeling as though a bucket of ice water had been thrown over her head, bringing her back to reality with an unpleasant shock. Her momentary fantasy burst like a fragile soap bubble.
Burt Hummel was bald!
"So, uh, I guess we'd better get out of your hair," Burt said, nearly causing an insane shriek of laughter to burst out of Terri's mouth. "I want to get Kurt looked at right away. Thanks again for all you did for him today."
Kurt smiled, echoing the sentiment. "You were really amazing."
The disappointment she had been experiencing faded, replaced by a feeling of tender regret. "I'm glad I could help. I'm sorry the circumstances weren't better but I really enjoyed having you here today."
"Maybe I could call you and we could go to the mall or something. I'll take you shopping for some new boots," he offered shyly. Then, he blushed. "Or does hanging out with a teenager sound dumb?"
"I don't think it sounds dumb at all," she told him with a smile, the warm contented feeling she had experienced while they cuddled on the sofa together returning all at once. "I've never really believed that friendship had anything to do with age."
Happiness brightened his eyes, removing some of the tiredness from their depths. "Me either."
Burt smiled at them both, reaching into the pocket of his coat. "That reminds me; I found your phone and the rest of your stuff in the SUV. Here," he said, handing the item to Kurt, who looked overjoyed to have it back.
Quickly, Kurt added a contact and had Terri punch in her phone number. He grinned at her. "There, now we're all set. I'll call you when the snow clears and we can go to the mall whenever you want."
"I'm already looking forward to it."
He looked pleased. "Me, too."
"And just think of the good you'll do my reputation when I tell everyone that I have a shopping date with a handsome younger man."
Both Hummels laughed at the light teasing. Then, Kurt startled Terri by stepping forward and wrapping his arms around her. "Thank you for everything, Mrs. Shue. I don't know what would have happened to me if you hadn't come along."
She hugged him back tightly. "I don't even want to think about it. You take good care of yourself, sweetie."
A few minutes later, bundled back into his coat, scarf and damp sneakers, his damaged clothes securely packed in a plastic sack, Kurt gave Terri a little wave as he stepped out of her apartment with his grateful father's arm once again securely supporting him.
Terri watched until the elevator doors were securely shut behind them before closing her apartment door. She returned to the sofa and curled up in the blanket, watching the softly falling snow and feeling a mixture of regret, satisfaction, happiness and concern, all mixed together with a little ache of loneliness.
Checking her phone display, she was surprised to notice that she had a few bars of available service again. She studied the empty readout for several long moments, and then dialed a familiar number.
"Hi, Will. It's Terri . . ."