I got some really bad news this week, so it wasn't hard to write this one. I hope you enjoy it.
Kurt was standing in front of the mirror while making the final touches on his suit. It was his father's funeral's day and he barely could keep himself together.
The last few days were like a nightmare. After the horrible night in his house he and Finn had to meet the mortician. It wasn't the biggest problem. But after a short discussion he had to decide a lot of things. For example choosing the right cascet. It was really hard. He just stood there in silence, looking at the cascets and didn't want to think about the fact that one of them will be his father's. They looked like cages. And he was going to choose a cage for his father to be buried in. That was the moment he ran out of the office.
Finn found him in the nearby park, leaning against a tree and sobbing his heart out. Luckily his brother understood that he couldn't go back, so he got a list with the things they had to decide of and brought him back to the hotel. Finn left him alone for a few hours to collect himself and only took the list out when he was completely sure Kurt can handle it. So they spent a night choosing between flowers and songs, but at the end of the day everything was finished.
The next two days passed almost uneventfully. Only two policemen came to ask more questions – one of them was the vampire from the last time – and report about a few details. The police didn't know much; it was a mystery how the neighbour ended up in the house murdered or who the man that attacked Jake was. It was like his mother's death. Nobody knew the reasons and nobody could find the murderer. It will be another cold case.
"Are you ready?" Finn asked from the door. Kurt looked into the mirror and saw his half-brother's reflection. Finn's black suit was perfect but his tie hung weirdly.
"Do you need a hand?" Kurt asked as he stepped closer and pointed towards the tie. Finn looked down and realised what Kurt was speaking about.
"Oh, that... I never knew how to tie a tie. My wife used to help me, I can't do it better than this."
"I'll do it" Kurt said and stepped closer. His fingers worked fast and he only needed a few seconds to finish it.
"Thanks" Finn said and took a few steps back while looking down at his tie again. "So are you ready? We really have to go now."
Kurt sighed and looked back into the mirror again.
"Yeah... let's do this" he said and walked out of his room with Finn following closely.
~ o ~
It was just like his mother's funeral. A lot of strangers standing around the lich-house and the family in the middle with the cascet. Last time Finn remained in the background, he didn't want to be near the man his mother loved, it felt like Burt took his father's place in his mother's life and he didn't like it. The irony is that after twelve years he stood by the same man's cascet to be there for Burt's son.
Kurt wanted to look like he was strong, but he wasn't a good actor. After they had arrived and he had to take his place, he looked at the flowers and the cascet under it and he almost passed out. Because he knew that it was the last time he had the chance to see his father. But he couldn't watch. He didn't want to see his father's unmoving body once again because it reminded him of the day he had found his father's body at the river. So he watched the people around him. It was like his mother's funeral. There were a lot of people he had never met with various expressions on their faces: mourning, sorrowful, even bored. But now there was a man who looked directly at Kurt. His expression was... interested?
"Dear family and friends!"
Kurt jumped as the man who they asked to make a speech began. He didn't want a priest to speak about his father at the funeral because they never went to the church and Kurt didn't believe in God. So the mortician sent them to this man, whose job's name was unknown for Kurt – orator? - and he composed a speech about Burt. So the man began speaking, and Kurt looked at him for a few seconds before turning back towards the man who was staring at him. But the man disappeared. Kurt scanned the crowd but didn't find him.
"Are you okay?" Finn asked quietly in concern.
"Yes. I just... I thought I saw something" Kurt replied and turned back towards the man in the middle.
The speech wasn't long, and Kurt was thankful for that. He didn't really paid attention, just stared at the cascet. So this is it. In a few minutes his father will be buried. It was final. He won't come back one day like it was just some cruel joke. He will rest here forever. At the funeral of his mother he had had at least his father to hold his hand. Burt hadn't said a word, but he had been there. Kurt had known that it wasn't the end, he wasn't alone. But now... he didn't know anymore.
As the cascet hit the bottom of the hole, Kurt was crying. No, he was sobbing. He wanted to kneel down right there and cry and cry until he lose all of his tears. He would certainly do that if Finn wouldn't have been behind him, always saying what he has to do. So he dropped the flower he had in his hand into the hole on the top of the cascet and then he stepped back to give enough place for the others. The mortician's men covered the cascet in and then others came to place their flowers on the grave. Kurt was standing there all the way unmoving, looking at the point he had seen his father for the last time, while his tears were running down his face.
"I think it's time to go" Finn spoke up somewhere near.
Kurt didn't move. He didn't want to move because it meant he has to move on and he wasn't ready. Not yet.
"Kurt, it's really late and I know I'm not affected by the weather but it's really cold out here and I'm pretty sure you are freezing."
Kurt didn't answer. Was it really cold? He didn't care. It didn't matter.
"Okay, we're going back to the hotel" Finn said and Kurt finally got out of his trance to see the man standing right in front of him. "If you won't come I'll carry you."
"No... I-I can walk" the boy muttered while taking a step right to see the grave Finn covered from his eyes a second ago.
"No more staring. It doesn't make it better. Come on" Finn said,then gripped Kurt's arm and started dragging the boy towards their car.
"Just give five more minutes" Kurt said suddenly and tried to free his arm but Finn didn't let him.
"No. We've been here for hours. You need something warm to eat and a long hot shower. I don't want you to get sick." Finn tried to walk again but Kurt didn't move.
"You don't get it? I don't care! Now leave me alone" the boy replied and made another attempt to free his arm.
"I know how you feel. I lost both of my parents. I know it was a long time ago but I still remember. I did the same twelve years ago and I can tell you, it doesn't make anything better. You still have to wake up every morning, you still have to go to school, you still have to live. Because your life isn't over. Even if it's hard to believe now."
Kurt stared at the other for a long moment before falling on his knees and sobbing loudly as he wanted earlier. Finn let him. He knew Kurt felt horrible and he needed to cry. So he let the boy weep until there was no more tears left.
~ o ~
The next thing Kurt remembered was the plane. They had left early in the morning because Finn didn't want to spend more time away from his home. And Kurt agreed. There was nothing left for him in this city. He had to move on and a new place was a good start.
Finn didn't tell Kurt, but he really wanted to leave because there was something wrong with this place. The two deaths and the mysterious man at Kurt's home were too much and he had only a few people in the city who worked for the council. They were safer at home. So after the funeral they packed their things and Finn booked the first flight back to Ohio. Kurt didn't say a word after they had left the cemetery, only nodded when Finn said something. Finn knew he had to give time the boy to process the changes which followed his father's death. It was fine.
They landed the next morning, an hour after sunrise. The ride to Lima was silent as the flight but neither of the brothers cared. They were tired and neither of them was in the mood to speak. Finn wanted a good sleep in his safe home and Kurt... Kurt just wanted to be alone. He really hoped he would have an own room, hopefully far away from Finn's bedroom, so he could finally deal with his emotions.
When they arrived, Kurt looked up at the house. No, it was a palace. Or a mansion, at least. He stared at the building with wide eyes and open mouth.
"Yeah, I know it's a little bit bigger than your house were but..."
"A little bit? This house would be enough for a whole regiment!" Kurt said. "I thought you had a normal house or a flat... you don't even need so many rooms. What do you do here alone?"
Finn shifted uncomfortably.
"This was my parent's house. I liked to live here, so I didn't sell it after I was left alone."
"And it costs a fortune every month, I'm sure" Kurt muttered to himself. Finn laughed.
"Yeah, you're right, but I don't care. Come on, I'll show you around."
They went inside and Kurt gawked at the sight in front of him. Finn's house had a big hall with large windows. It was wonderful. There were doors on each side of the hall, leading somewhere, Kurt didn't see where. And there was a staircase in the middle, leading to the first floor. It was like the rich guys' houses in the soap operas Kurt's grandmother used to watch all the time.
"The bedrooms are upstairs. I'll show you the kitchen and the living room later, and there is my study, too, but you probably won't go there often. I only have a few employees. Maria, who cleans the house twice a week, and a few guards. You will meet them later, but they are most of the time outside. Yeah, I think that's all you have to know. Let's go upstairs."
Finn went ahead with Kurt close behind him. On the first floor were a lot of doors, probably leading to bedrooms and a few of them to bathrooms.
"This is my room" Finn said as they reached the first door on the right. "I only sleep here, so if you don't find me here then I'm dowstairs somewhere. And this is your room."
Luckily the bedroom Finn had chosen for Kurt was on the other end of the floor. The boy stepped closer and hesitantly opened the door. As he stepped in, he saw immediately that this room was twice the size of his old one. There were large windows, the same as in the hall, with those old tipe of windowsills where somebody can curl up with a book on rainy days. Kurt smiled at the thought. Yes, he will definitely do that one day. There was a big, comfortable looking bed on the left wall and a wardrobe on the other side of the room, bigger than his old one. Next to the wardrobe there was a door leading to somewhere.
"I chose this room because it has an own bathroom. I hope you like it" Finn said as he stepped in behind Kurt.
"Yes, this is fantastic. Thank you" Kurt said as he made his way towards the bathroom.
"Then I leave you alone for now. I have a lot of work to do, so I will be in my study. That's the second door on the right downstairs. And if you need anything, you can ask Jake or the other guards. They will help you."
Finn had left before Kurt could reply. He turned back from the bathroom door and looked around. So this is his new room. And his new home. It was fantastic, he often dreamed of something like that. He wanted to make this place cozy, so he spent the next hours with unpacking and organising his things. After that he had nothing else to do, so he went downstairs.
He didn't want to bother Finn, so he visited the left wing first. There was a kitchen with everything he would need for cooking. He was glad because he really needed some human food. They only drank blood since he got out of the hospital and he needed something to eat. He went to the frigde to search for the ingredients but he only found blood there. A lot of blood. But nothing else. So he searched in the cupboard. Nothing.
"Okay, that won't work" he said to himself as he looked around. He had to speak with Finn but didn't want to bother the other while working, so he decided to wait a little longer and went outside.
There was a large terrace behind the house with tables and big armchairs. He stepped closer to sit down but then he saw two guards only a few steps away, looking right at him.
"Hi" he began hesitantly. "I'm Kurt, Finn's half-brother. Nice to meet you."
The guards stared at him and nodded finally before they turned away and left the boy alone.
"Fantastic" Kurt muttered and sat down. He took his phone out of his pocket. He thought that maybe a few of his friends from the old school would be available on Skype but there was nobody. Kurt sighed. Of course , he searched for some reading matter and spent the afternoon with reading.
When he looked up from the e-book he was reading in the last two hours, he recognized that it was almost dark. And a little cold, too. Maybe Finn had finished his work and Kurt can ask him to order some food. He was really hungry and he knew that blood wouldn't be enough again. So he stood up, went back to the house and turned to right to find the study.
There were two doors in front of him and he didn't know which one led to the study. So he went to the first one which was slightly open.
"...I don't know, man. This is really creepy. And the little guy found both of them. What if he is the murderer?" asked a voice Kurt didn't know. He peeked in and saw Finn sitting by the table with an other man who reminded him of Jake.
"Kurt? No, I don't think he has anything to do with the murders. Burt was choked to death, Kurt don't have the strength to do something like that. And don't forget that man in the house. I'm sure he killed the neighbour."
"Again... two murders and the guy was there when they happened. I think you should be very careful."
Kurt took a step back. And then another. They couldn't think he did those things? They can't think that he... to his own father...
"So what do you suggest? What should I do?" Finn asked.
"I think you should keep a few guards around him all the time, so he can't try anything. And maybe you could send him to one of that bording schools in another state. He would be far away and you wouldn't have to worry about him anymore. You wouldn't even have to visit him. Problem sold."
"Maybe you're right..." Finn started but Kurt couldn't hear anymore. He ran.
He ran through the house in record time, tore the front door open and stormed out towards the gates. He couldn't believe it. Finn took him here, on the other end of the world, to send him into a boarding school far away from everything, so he don't have to worry about Kurt anymore. Because he thought Kurt took part in his father's murder.
Kurt didn't recognize that he was weeping. He only knew he wanted to go away and never come back here. He didn't want to live with Finn and hear what he thinks of Kurt. He just wanted to be alone. He heard that some of the guards were following him so he ran faster. He could shake them off, he was half a vampire, too. After getting through the gate he went into the forest opposite the house and turned left. He ran a little longer, then turned right, then left one more time and only after a few more meters slowed down. He needed a few seconds to catch his breath and be quiet enough for listening. He heard noises from the direction he came from, but the others were far behind him. He let out a shaky breath. He was alone as he planned.
But then he looked around. For the first time he recognized that he was in the middle of a forest he didn't know and he was alone. Maybe this wasn't his best idea. He took a few steps back. Suddenly, it was deadly silent. He didn't hear Finn's men anymore, just the silence. And it was so scary. He started to think about the direction he came from. Was this big oak on his left or his right? Or it was the other big oak he saw in front of him? God, he was lost. In the middle of an unknown forest.
"Okay, don't panic. Deep breath, use your head" he said to himself. The next moment he heard loud breathing behind his back. He turned to see who it was but saw nobody.
"Who... who is there?" he asked. Okay, he was terrified. It was a very bad idea. Mostly because nobody answered him. Two more minutes in silence, than a crack from his right.
"It's not funny! Just come out, please. I can't find the way out of these woods."
"That's really a problem, little boy" a deep voice said behind his back. He wanted to turn to see its owner but he was restrained before he could do anything.
Yes, I like cliffhangers.