Author's Note: Yay! An update! Just want to say thank you for all your splendid reviews and awesome response to the story.
Mostly filler with some fluffy flashbacks. Next chapter will be more of the present moving forward...most likely.
Anyways! Hope you guys enjoy it!
Happy Reading!
No beta. All mistakes are my own.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing, nothing. No profit made etc. See Chapter 1 for more elaborate disclaimer.
~C.J.
(Chapter 3)
*BUZZ BUZZ*
*BUZZ BUZZ*
*BUZZ BUZZ*
…
*BUZZ BUZZ*
Kurt threw his pillow off his head and grabbed his constantly vibrating phone. It was three in the freaking morning, who the hell calls this early? Or late...whatever the heck kind of time it was!
Unknown
Seriously?
Kurt's eye twitched when it vibrated again. This better be important. "Hello?" He answered sharply.
There was a pause on the other end, then he heard someone exhale, long and drawn out. "Kurt…"
The sleepy boy's whole world stopped, his hand gripping his iPhone tighter as his breath hitched. "Blaine?"
He laughed on the other end, his honey-smooth voice filling Kurt's ears. "Yeah, it's me."
"Oh my Gosh." He voice started to quiver, all the pent up emotion he'd been bottling up inside that had anything to do with Blaine started rushing out in overwhelming waves. "You're okay. I can hear your voice, and you're all right. You have no idea how worried I've been." Kurt's body started shaking, not hearing Blaine's voice for almost a year had driven him crazy. He got the occasional letter from Blaine, Kurt realizing that he had more time to write than Blaine must have, and he understood. He always understood. "Is everything all right? You're not hurt or anything, are you? Please, please tell me you're okay."
"Hey, hey, calm down. I'm ok. Everything…everything is perfect now." Blaine soothed, the crackling of connection ripping at Kurt's heart. It reminded him how far away Blaine really was.
Kurt sniffed, trying to bring himself under control. "Letters can only do so much, you know? Actually hearing you, talking to you," Kurt swallowed thickly. "Proves you're alive."
Another crackle, some shuffling, Kurt was fairly certain he heard a metal door close. "I got all your letters. Well, sometimes I get three at a time. Last week I got five though." Kurt blushed; he'd gotten a bit frantic. "I read every single one of them, whenever I get the chance, sometimes more than once. I-I try to write back when I can, but it's so difficult with everything going on. Kurt, I'm so sorry." Blaine's voice cracked, it was heartbreaking to hear Blaine's voice strain like that. "I miss you like crazy, baby."
Kurt closed his eyes, letting that warm feeling settle in his chest at the slip of endearment. "Blaine, honey, I miss you so much. You have no idea. It-It's not the same without you. Even without you near me, you've become like this weird permanency in my life." He ran a hand through his messy bed hair. "And don't you dare apologize to me, Blaine Anderson. You have nothing to apologize for. I only write so much, because no matter what I'm doing, or what happens to me, I always want to tell you about it. Maybe even a little part of me hopes that the letters take your mind off things, even if it's only for a few minutes."
Blaine chuckles wetly, "They do. Your letters are the things that keep me going. They even make me smile, and over here that's not an easy feat. Though, that aromatherapy body works care package was heaven in a basket. I can't thank you enough."
"Don't even worry about it. The issue of Vogue I slipped in there, I'd already read anyways." Kurt opened his eyes, staring across the moonlit room at his vanity mirror, where all of Sargent Anderson's letters were taped around the frame like a literary halo. "Just come back in one piece okay? I just want you back safe, and healthy, and…and with me."
"All right, ten more weeks. Ten more weeks, and then I'm back. Think you can wait that long?"
Kurt let out a dry laugh, "I don't have much of a choice, do I?" He rubbed at the sleep in his eyes, sniffling quietly. "It just…gets hard sometimes. I didn't think it was possible for me to want…NEED someone this much." Kurt shook his head. How did he ever manage to fall for someone while they were thousands of miles away? "I feel so…so…"
"…empty?" Blaine supplied.
"Yeah…that's one way of putting it."
Kurt heard Blaine shuffle around a bit more, a chair scraping in the background. "I think I can make you feel better, make it a bit easier…if you'd let me."
"Make me feel better? Blaine, I'll be all right. It's you I'm worried about. You're the one out there. You're the one risking your life. You're…"
"Kurt, shut up." Blaine chuckled out.
Kurt pursed his lips into a thin line. Well, all right then.
"Let's try this again. Kurt, for once, I'm going to make you feel better. And you're going to let me. Got it?"
An affectionate smile crossed his face, "…yes, sir."
"Are you at home? Were you sleeping?"
Kurt nodded, "Yeah."
"Can you lie down for me?"
He did so, snuggling under the covers and resting his head on his pillow. "Done."
"Comfortable?"
"Lying in bed with you talking to me? It's the most comfortable I've felt in months."
"Good, good." Blaine seemed to be saying it to himself rather than to Kurt.
There was another beat of silence, but Kurt was willing to wait. He didn't know what Blaine had planned to ease the heaviness in his heart.
Though he sure wasn't expecting what happened next.
Kurt, I hear you callin'
But I can't come home right now
Me and the boys are playin'
And we just can't find the sound
Kurt put a hand over his mouth, breaths beginning to come out in shaky hitches. This perfect guy, perfect man, was NOT serenading him over the phone from half a world away. He just was not.
Just a few more hours
And I'll be right home to you
I think I hear them callin'
Oh, Kurt, what can I do?
Kurt, what can I do?
But he was. He really was.
Kurt couldn't help himself when he closed his eyes, listening to the sweet voice as it caressed his ears.
You say you feel so empty
That our house just ain't a home
And I'm always somewhere else
And you're always there alone
Kurt whimpered, a lone tear escaping from between one of his tightly shut eyelids. The only tear he allowed himself to shed that night.
Just a few more hours
And I'll be right home to you
I think I hear them callin'
Oh, Kurt, what can I do?
Kurt, what can I do?
He hugged his knees to his chest and curled up on his side. Even though this made Kurt want to cry, it was oddly just what Kurt needed. It made him feel closer to Blaine.
Kurt, I know you're lonely
And I hope you'll be all right
'Cause me and the boys will be playin'
All night
Closer to this soldier.
All night
HIS soldier.
"Sweet dreams, Kurt."
Kurt's eyes were heavier now, his phone already threatening to slip from his grip as he straddled the line of consciousness. Blaine's soothing voice was already lulling him back to sleep. The last thing he heard were these three words.
"I love you."
As Kurt slowly came back to consciousness, he realized that his entire body felt pleasantly warm. His pillow was somehow softer, and warmer. It was a nice way to wake up, especially since the past few attempts at sleep had been less than restful. No matter how much Kurt slept, he always felt as if he'd been awake for days at a time. So this, this was refreshing. With the comforting warmth surrounding him, and the memory of Blaine's first declaration of love to him, Kurt couldn't help but smile. The first one he'd cracked in days.
Then it shifted, the warm weight shifted in his arms. Now, if that hadn't been enough to freak out a hazy feeling Kurt, then what the weight proceeded to do next certainly did. It whined. Just to reiterate, because Kurt's mind was seriously not processing this right now, it WHINED.
Kurt's eyes snapped open. The first thing he was greeted with, was a huge, fuzzy, black head. It was massive. There were pointed ears perked up, a black snout twitching as it sniffed, and…oh sweet cheesus, dark eyes, big dark eyes, open and looking directly at Kurt. Mother of God, it's a bear. It's a fucking bear.
*LICK*
And that did it.
That surely did it.
Kurt was screaming.
"Ahhhhh!" The animal barked when the human it had been sleeping with screamed in its ears. The poor animal flattening them and watched in confused concern as the human fell off the bed. He started to bark frantically, his human was in distress!
Wait, what? Bark? Bears don't bark.
Kurt scrambled backwards on the floor, and he put his hands up to protect his face, the dog still barked loudly.
"Hey! Queen, that's enough! Down boy, quiet. You're scaring Kurt." The dog whined again, the rustling of the bed sheets alerting Kurt that the dog possibly settled down on the hospital bed. "Kurt?"
Still a bit fearful, Kurt began to lower his arms. Looking up hesitantly, "F-Finn?"
Finn smiled then, kneeling down on the floor where Kurt was huddled in a ball. "Sup bro?"
Kurt lowered his hands completely now, his gaze shifting from the beast to his brother. "That's a dog."
"Uhuh."
"Finn, that's a dog."
"Uh, yeah?"
"Why is there a dog in my room!?" Kurt shouted. The dog barked at the loud voice, his head lowering to settle on its paws.
"Um…because he misses his favorite person?" Finn questioned, not entirely sure of his answers anymore.
Kurt laughed, a dry one that was in all honestly not that humorous. "Finn, this is a hospital. What makes you think bringing your filthy animal in here would be anything other than a bad idea?"
Finn raised an eyebrow at him, turning back to the dog and patting the ground. "Here, Queen. Come on, boy." The dog, 'Queen,' he supposed, picked his head up suddenly. His tail waggled happily before he hopped down and started to approach Kurt.
Kurt whimpered and moved further back towards the wall. "F-F-Finn, g-get it away from m-me."
Finn sighed, grabbing the dog by the collar before it could go any further. It's nails scratched against the linoleum floor as it tried to get closer to Kurt, almost huffing in frustration as its efforts were deterred. "Uh…Kurt? Sargent McQueen is your dog."
What?
Kurt stared at Finn, and then looked over at where Queen was staring at him eagerly. The dog was fluffy, white underbelly with black patches of fur, and a curled tail. Okay, not a bear. A dog, but still…it was freaking huge. He laughed suddenly, "Why is it so big? If I were to have ever gotten a dog, it would be one of those tiny purse ones someone could punt over a fence."
Finn scratched the back of his head, "You told me what it was once, but all I can remember is that it's the type of dog from that Hachi movie that made you cry. Alpine, Acai, A pita, or whatever."
Something sparked in Kurt's brain for a moment, "Akita?"
"Yeah, that's it!" Queen started tugging on his collar again, trying to get to Kurt once more. Looking at Kurt with those big puppy brownish eyes. "You have to remember him. You and Blaine fought over this little guy's name for weeks. Then you just sort of…combined them. Though you always insist I just call him Queen." Kurt stared into the dog's eyes, willing some spark of recognition to come to him.
Queen whined and settled on his belly, worming forward cautiously as he sensed his owner's agitation. When a cold nose nudged at his knee, Kurt hesitantly held out his hand. Still, he remembered nothing. The dog bumped against his outstretched hand, licking it and nuzzling it to signal his friendliness. Kurt couldn't help but smile, scratching behind the dog's ears and giggling when Queen let out a happy snuffle. "Sorry, boy. I-I wish, I remembered you. I really do. You seem…sweet, burly and possibly ridden with mitochondrial diseases, but still sweet."
The Akita happily licked at Kurt's face, sniffing and nuzzling him in an ecstatic greeting. Finn let out a breath of relief, "Come on. Let me help you up."
Kurt nodded, allowing Finn to help him stand so he could shuffle back into his hospital bed. Queen followed right after him, settling at the end of the bed between Kurt's calves and resting it's massive head on Kurt's thigh. He stared out of Kurt's see-through hospital sliding door, watching as the people passed. "How in the world did you get him in here in the first place?"
Finn shrugged as he sat down in the chair beside Kurt's bed, "I just brought him in wearing this back-packy thing, told them he was a service dog. Was good enough for them."
Kurt scratched behind Queen's ears as he talked, "Well, IS he a service dog?"
Finn shrugged, "Uh…can't dogs sense when people have seizures and stuff? Figured that counted as a service of some sort."
Kurt snorted at his stepbrother, "Yeah…okay."
"Oh! Almost forgot." Finn reached beside his chair and revealed as tray of coffee.
Kurt stared at them, "Is…one mine?"
"They're all yours. That one is a Grande Nonfat Mocha. This is a Grande Regular Mocha. This cup is filled with soymilk, and that cup has extra mocha powder. Just in case the drinks aren't perfect, you or I could…I don't know, try and figure out how to make it taste better?"
"Huh?"
Finn looked a little worried, "Crap, did you not want coffee anymore? I could get you something else. Are you hungry? Do you want some ice chips?"
Kurt frowned, "Finn…"
He hung his head low and put down the tray, "You're kicking me out again, aren't you?"
Kurt furrowed his brows, why was Finn acting this way? "Jeez, how horrible a person am I? Did I really throw you out before?"
Finn bit his lip, but nodded, not sure which Kurt he was talking to. 'Kurt' Kurt, or 'Mood-Swingy' Kurt. "Yeah. You also said I looked like the Pillsbury Dough-Boy's retarded half-brother. Then you threw a bedpan at my head. Thankfully it was empty."
Kurt started to choke, whether he was chocking on a laugh or a sob, he wasn't really sure. "Please tell me you're just trying to make me laugh with one of you're TERRIBLE jokes." When Finn just shrugged, Kurt leaned his head back against his pillow. Queen lifted his head up and whimpered at Kurt, not liking his owner's sad tone. "I'm sorry, Finn. I don't know why I would act so terrible. That…doesn't even sound like me."
"You're going through a rough time, with the tumor and all. I understand. We all just want you to be comfortable. You don't need any stress; at least, that's what Quinn said. It's okay to yell at me, I can take it."
Kurt shook his head. He didn't even know if he had the energy to full-on cry at this point anymore. "I have insulted my brother. I can't remember my own dog. I don't know when my husband is gonna be home. I have a tumor that screws with me four ways from Sunday. How can this possibly get any worse?"
"Did I mention there's a couple here to see you?"
Rolling his eyes—like seriously, hadn't Finn ever heard of a rhetorical question?—he looked towards the glass doors and froze, "What are they doing here?" There were two people conversing with Carole and his father. The woman looking down at the ground and covering her mouth while the man nodded his head, looking at something far off as he listened to whatever his parents must have been explaining.
Finn looked over Kurt's shoulder and tilted his head, averting his eyes when he saw who it was. "Those two?" Kurt nodded. "Nope! No clue. I don't know who they are. Do you?"
"Yeah." Kurt swallowed, "That's Mr. and Mrs. Anderson. Blaine's parents." Eyes widening when he watched Carole, his dad, and the Andersons start walking towards his room. No. He couldn't handle them, not then and certainly not now. No, no, no, no.
He turned on his side abruptly, effectively flipping Queen off of him and hearing the dog yelp to the floor in surprise. Kurt held the pillow to his ears and started singing his 'la la la la' song. Ignoring Finn as he shook him to try and get his attention. His happy place, all Kurt needed was his happy place. With Blaine, all he needed was Blaine.
La…La…La.
Kurt wrung his hands in anticipation, watching as soldier after soldier exited the terminal and embraced their loved ones. Soldiers with kids cried as they picked their children up, commenting on how big they've grown since they last held them. Lovers kissed and laughed because their spouse has come home safe and sound. Parents embraced their soldiers' safe arrival back. He smiled at them all, wanting nothing more than to see HIS soldier as well.
He looked back over the crowd of balloons and posters, his own board torn at the top slightly from how much he'd been fidgeting. Kurt wanted to stomp his way into the plane and find Blaine himself he was getting so impatient, but then…he saw him.
Blaine.
The tired, and slightly frantic looking Blaine, walked into the lobby with the rest of the soldiers. His bags slung over his back and shoulders. Blaine looked all around him, Kurt smiling to himself at how okay he looked. How ALIVE he looked. Kurt held up his sign, waiting for Blaine to see it over the crowd of happy people.
Sgt. Anderson!
Home is right here!
The red arrow pointed down to himself as Kurt held the sign over his head. Watching Blaine's face turn from searching, to breathtakingly happy, it was almost worth the year without him. Almost. Blaine made his way over. Even taking the time to excuse himself as he accidently bumped into other soldiers or a member of their families. As Blaine got closer and closer, tears started to stream down Kurt's cheeks. He loved this man so freaking much.
Blaine smiled wildly, stopping in front of Kurt and dropping his bags. "Hi."
Kurt lowered his arms, the poster sitting between them. "Hey soldier." He threw his arms around Blaine without warning, crushing the shorter man to him as he hugged Kurt back. "Thank you for my song." Kurt whispered. The pale boy hid his face in Blaine's lapel, inhaling that crisp scent once more. He could also smell dirt and sweat, but he really couldn't give a damn. Blaine was in his arms, warm, inviting, healthy. That's all that mattered. "And welcome home."
Blaine squeezed Kurt once more before pulling back and looking at the paler male's face, cupping his cheek with a calloused hand. "Good to be home."
When Blaine wiped at Kurt's wet cheeks with his thumbs, Kurt couldn't hold back any longer. The affectionate gesture causing him to grip at Blaine's collar and crush Blaine's mouth to his own. The soldier was surprised, for sure, but he was in no way disappointed. He put one hand on Kurt's waist and the other on the small of his back. He pressed their bodies together, kissing and damn near making out in the middle of the lobby. No one batted an eye. Well, no more than was to be expected, but no one said a thing. There was merely the shock at finding out that their Sargent had finally found someone to return to. It was his first time being welcomed home by somebody, rather than nobody. That day, Kurt didn't ask why Blaine's parents weren't there. He would find that out during one of the days they could finally spend with each other.
Kurt pulled back when he needed air, wrapping his arms around his…boyfriend? Whatever, that's a conversation for a later time. He rubbed his nose against Blaine's, smiling when Blaine blushed adorably at the action. "Please say you're at least here until Thanksgiving."
"No."
Glasz eyes grew wide, body going rigid in Blaine's arms at the thought of having to say goodbye to Blaine before then. "O-Oh?"
Blaine just smiled, "I'm staying for Thanksgiving…AND Christmas. If I'm lucky, possibly New Year's. But if I'm even luckier than that…who knows?"
Kurt covered his mouth with both his hands and squealed embarrassingly loud. "Holy crap! Are you serious? We can have Christmas together?"
"If you want me."
Kurt stared at him, a smile creeping up on his lips as he shook his head disbelievingly at Blaine's obliviousness. He reached for the buttons on his white jacket, popping each one open slowly and methodically. Blaine's eyebrows quirked up in curiosity, wondering if this was going to turn into something too wanky for an airport and better served for some alone time with one another.
"GET IT, SARGE!"
Blaine was going to kill Jeremiah.
Though, when the last button was popped, Blaine couldn't feel anything other than warm affection. His hazel eyes sparkled with brimming tears because of how amazing this beautiful man standing before him was. Underneath the jacket had been a white T-shirt, with four words pressed across it.
I
Love
You
Too
A/N: So that was Kiss's 'Beth.' Just tweaked with replacing Beth's name with Kurt's. Be back when I can! Review? :)