Finn remembered the first seizure he'd ever witnessed for Kurt. It was a week or two after the basement incident. Carole had invited Kurt and Burt to the Saturday market, and surprisingly, Burt had agreed. The other half of their makeshift family/relationship hadn't agreed to do anything for at least the last two weeks. Finn thought it must have been because of the whole faggy incident, but he knew better now.

Kurt had been quiet. He'd zone out a lot, losing the conversation and jumping back into where he'd left off suddenly. Burt didn't seem to be phased, simply would wrap an arm around his son and continue the conversation for him as if he knew what his so would have said.

They were walking out when Kurt began to slow down, suddenly coming to a stop and blinking hard. Burt was standing next to him in a split second, staring at the young teen carefully. He had a watch on, which he watched carefully. Before fifteen seconds had even gone by, Kurt was blinking and shaking his head, looking dazed. That was a longer one than had been before. Burt had his arm wrapped around his son's shoulders, almost holding him up.

"Alright, let's get home, shall we?"

Kurt looked up at his dad and blinked, lost. Then an unusual look of frustration washed over him and he nodded, passing his dad's car keys over.

"Yeah. Carole, thanks for bringing us. It was a great day." Kurt looked fully drained and he and Burt quickly left after hugging Carole and Burt giving Finn a pat on the shoulder.

Finn hadn't known it at the time, as Burt and Kurt hadn't informed Finn and Carole about Kurt's seizures for another two weeks, but he'd just witnessed his first full seizure.

-.-.-.-

The door to the ambulance slammed open as soon as it was safe enough to do so, and one of the paramedics hopped out in front of the St. Ormond Children's Hospital. She began to pull the gurney out, shouting things as she went.

"Kurt Hummel, 15, Status Post Status Epilepticus. A dose of Lorazepam on the way. Fluids wide open, 20 gauge in the right wrist, another twenty in the left forearm. Managed to get a very vague response about twenty minutes ago, when he was awake, but since lapsed into unconsciousness. 4 seizures back-to-back. This is his brother."

Finn hopped out, holding Kurt's hand. He hadn't had another seizure yet, but frankly, Finn was expecting another one to happen any second now, even though Kurt had gotten medication in route.

"He vomited and lapsed right into unconsciousness almost immediately. Father should be in the waiting room already."

"I'm his neurologist," someone shouted and waved their gloved hand. "Trauma one, please."

Finn was assaulted with the flurry of movement as Kurt was pushed into a room and he was pushed out, given to a nurse, and then passed off to Burt.

-.-.-

Dr. Sullivan removed one of his gloves and quickly jotted something down on a chart. He glanced over to where his patient lay, turned on his side and carefully propped up. Now on his left side, Kurt had a pillow angled under his head and another against his chest, with a pillow between his knees, and then one stuffed behind his back to keep him propped up. He wanted to laugh when he noticed that Kurt was gripping at the seizure guards with one hand, as if he were trying to tug it down and away from the railings on his bed.

One of the nurses – Dr. Sullivan knew he should know her name, but he didn't – adjusted Kurt's Nasal Cannula before double-checking the leads into the rolling monitor. Kurt's SPO2 was still resting in the mid-to-high 80's, and if it persisted, they'd be forced to move him over to an OxyMask. Soon, the unnamed nurse left, leaving on Dr. Sullivan and Nurse Rosa with Kurt.

Nurse Rosa – one of the only Neuro ICU nurses that Dr. Sullivan would allow to set up an EEG correctly – was cleaning up around the room, and preparing to get a different IV access. The last IV had blown, and if they couldn't get more access soon, they'd be forced to set Kurt up with a port. Dr. Sullivan didn't want to do it to the poor kid, but he would if his hand was forced.

"Rosa? I'm going to get an EEG set up," Dr. Sullivan said as he pulled on a fresh set of gloves. "I'll write out the orders, but I want Q2 hour checks, with a sitter during the night, or when his father leaves. Burt will be able to be here pretty much 24/7, but if this turns into more than an observation stay, he's going to need help. As is, Kurt's a high risk because he had the spinal tap. "

"Not a problem, Dr. Sullivan," came her right Hispanic accent. She cleaned off a spot in his forearm and, without glancing up, continued to speak.

"I'm going with an 18 into his right forearm. Only vein I can get right now."

"Try it. If we can't get it, then we'll be forced to page Interventional Radiology, maybe even have to go with a central line or a port," he breathed out in a sigh.

Rosa nodded and, after finding the right spot, advanced with the needle. It slid into Kurt's arm without him stirring, and Rosa quickly got a flash of blood fill up the canister. She pulled out the sharp part of the IV port, and screwed in a connection. She quickly flushed the IV with saline before she nodded to Dr. Sullivan.

"I have access," she said as she secured the IV.

"What his temp? IS he still running low?" Dr. Sullivan asked as he glued on another lead. Kurt would kill him for messing up his hair with the glue, but he'd deal.

Rosa ran the temporal scanner over Kurt's forehead murmured something to herself.

"Pobre niño," she murmured, then spoke louder. "96.3. I'll get him some warm blankets. You want warm saline?"

Dr. Sullivan nodded as he finished gluing down the last lead. Then he pulled a wrap over Kurt's head, making sure the leads were really secure, and wouldn't move if Kurt moved his head. Rosa ran out to get warmed saline and a few warm blankets. She draped the warm blankets over Kurt's body, watching as the slight furrow in Kurt's brow released with the application of the warm blankets.

When both were finished, Rosa looked up at Dr. Sullivan.

"Do you mind going to get Papa Bear from the waiting room?" Dr. Sullivan asked, though it came out as a hopeful suggestion. Burt always had a million questions, and he never liked answering them when they were in the hallways. HIPAA was a bitch.

Rosa laughed and waved him off.

"Yes, I will get our papa bear. But you owe me, Dr. Sullivan," she said as she cleaned up.

"I will buy you as much coffee as you can take. Or I can take you to lunch."

"I think I'll take you up on the coffee. I'm working a double tonight, and I double back here 8 hours after I get off. You buy me three cups, double shot, we're even!" she called as she started down the hall of the Neuro ICU.

Dr. Sullivan smiled as he turned back to Kurt. Maybe someday they'd managed to get a meal together. Today was not that day. Instead he shook his head and returned to his work. He made sure all the EEG leads were correct, and then made a quick read of the EEG, wondering which brain waves Kurt was laying in. A Delta Waveform jumped at him, and he quickly nodded. He'd sedated Kurt as deep as he safely could, wanting the young man to sleep for a while, and then wake on his own naturally.

Nodding to himself, Dr. Sullivan took out his tablet. He tapped onto Kurt's chart and blew out a sigh. He began to read where he had left off, and then he began to type. He typed out everything that had been done to treat Kurt so far, noting the catheterization, the Lumbar Puncture, how he was led to notice it was a true status episode, and wrote out new orders for his treatment.

Dr. Sullivan then sighed as he read the labs. It looked like Kurt was, in fact, taking his medication like ordered. Kurt's metabolic panel showed signs of him sticking to the Ketogenic Diet – Actually following it to a T, in fact.

Was this refractory Epilepsy? Or was he looking at an undiagnosed epilepsy syndrome? Kurt had suffered at least 6 noticeable seizures, but how many had he had before they realized he was having seizures?

Then there was the bruising on Kurt's body to think about. Dr. Sullivan knew for a fact that Burt Hummel would never abuse his son, but there was so much bruising that there had to be something going on. Dr. Sullivan was no stranger to bullying, and he knew Kurt wasn't either. But if there was actual pain being dished out – pain from a physical attack – then he knew that he would have to step in.

Kurt was probably hiding how much this was affecting him, because Dr. Sullivan knew that Burt would never let his son go somewhere where he'd be hurt. For god's sake, the man made Kurt wear a special monitor at night to make sure that he didn't die of SUDEP during the night.

Feeling his head begin to pound with a headache, Dr. Sullivan exited out of his tablet and then closed it down with a small sigh. He'd figure it out after he faced down with Papa Bear Burt Hummel, who would be on edge due to his son being in the hospital – again.

-.-.-.-

Nurse Rosa was so getting more than coffee out of this. So getting more than coffee. If she knew that she'd have to deal with New Directions, then she wouldn't have taken the job. In fact, Rosa wanted to run back up to the sixth floor and make Dr. Sullivan go deal with them.

She stared down at Rachel Berry, the current bane of her existence. Normally it was a patient or patient's parent, not someone of only 'friend' relations.

"Kurt is our best friend! We need him for regionals. If you can't tell us that he will be okay for regionals, we'll have to find a better nurse!" she squeaked. Rosa just looked at her before glancing up at Burt, who just looked disgusted.

"Listen, Chica. I cannot tell you anything about your friend. But he can. If he decides. Right now, though, his son needs him. Burt, are you ready?"

Burt grabbed his sweatshirt and ballcap before he nodded to Rosa.

"Let's go. Finn, Carole, you coming up?"

Carole already had her purse in her hand, and Finn was right there beside his mother, ready to go see his step brother.

"You kids go home. Kurt is fine," Burt said gruffly, sounding like he simply wanted this whole mess to go away.

"No!" Blaine blurted out, his hands coming up in an angry motion. Burt raised an eyebrow.

"We have a right to know how Kurt is doing! He lied to us!"

Burt had to use an immense amount of self-control in order to not strangle the kid in front of him. Because that's what Blaine was – he was a kid who acted like he'd had his favorite toy taken away from him.

"Blaine Anderson, you need to get out of my face. You, of all people, are one of my least favorite persons in the world, because you broke my son's heart. You cheated on him with someone he despised, and that person went out of his way to make Kurt's life hell for a few weeks. And you kissed Rachel Berry. You are not my son's boyfriend. Rachel, new Directions, the only people I want here right now is Finn, Santana, Britney, Artie, and Mike. The rest of you clear out and go home. My kid is in the hospital and he needs quiet. Go!"

People immediately began to evacuate the area. Within a minute, the people that Burt wanted gone, were gone. Britney looked up at Burt, her arms crossed.

"Can we stay and see Kurt after you talk to the doctor?" Santana asked. She had an arm wrapped around Britney's shoulders, comforting the girl even as she maintained her 'Head Bitch in Charge' persona.

"Yes. You guys, come up with us. You can sit in the waiting room."

They quickly headed up to the fifth floor, where the two groups branched off. Burt, Finn, and Carole went to the room, while Santana, Britney, Mike, and Artie went into the waiting room.

"Why them?" Finn asked with a furrow to his brow. He didn't think that the four of them were that tight with Kurt, but then again, he wasn't either.

"Santana and Britney fought for him to become a cheerio, even though Sue was hesitant to allow him onto the team," Burt explained. "And Artie and Mike have been friends with Kurt since he was in third grade. They're not too close at school, but anytime they get together, it's like they've never been apart."

Finn nodded slowly as they entered the room. There was a sign on the door as they walked in, notating the reason why Kurt was there, whether he was a DNR or Full Code, and his age. Finn, surprisingly, wasn't too affected by the sign this time. The first time that Kurt had ended up in the Neuro ICU, he hadn't been able to cross the doorway because of how scary it looked.

Kurt was still on his left side, attached to the EEG and there was now an oxygen mask on his face. Dr. Sullivan stood at the end of Kurt's bed, typing on a tablet as he dictated his orders into the Medact. A nurse was bustling around the room, getting a set of vitals and emptying Kurt's catheter.

"Ann, I'm ordering a portable chest X-ray. I just want to check for any aspiration. He sounds a little gurgly, but I don't want him moved, bring the machine in. He's allowed visitors if Burt allows them in," Dr. Sullivan ordered. "If he doesn't want a select person in the room, we don't let them. Kurt needs rest. He's still showing seizure activity in the EEG that I reviewed."

"Sounds perfect," Ann said. She looked up to see the three family members file in and try to make themselves small as the nurse ran around the room.

"I'll make that easy for you. Carole, Finn, Mike, Britney, Santana, and Artie are the only ones allowed in. And Sue Sylvester, but she's a given," Burt said. Dr. Sullivan whipped around, the tablet still in hand. He nodded to Burt and waved his pointed finger between Ann, Rosa, and Burt.

"You snuck in this time," he said. Burt nodded slowly.

"After I busted in guns blazing and accidentally sent Kurt into a seizure that one time, I don't think I'll ever not sneak into the room again," he commented dryly.

Burt took a few steps towards Kurt, and laid his hand on his son's. The boy slumbered, not at all disturbed by his father's entrance. Though, the boy did relax once his father had snuck into the room.

"How's my kid?" Burt asked, moving his hand to stroke his son's cheek. Kurt's hand moved up to his face and took his father's hand in his, moving their embraced hands to his chest to hold. Burt smiled a little and sat on the edge of the bed.

"He's resting now, which is all we can do until he begins to wake up and come out of the postictal state. As you know, Kurt can get aggressive when he's postictal, so we normally sedate him and load him up with medication to stop the seizure cycles. What we need to find out is why he's still having seizures. Has he been nauseated more than usual?"

Burt sighed and took a minute to think.

"He's mentioned being nauseous while at school, but never to the point that he would throw up," Finn said. "Mostly he'd mention it at school, and then he'd get dizzy. But after that, he would sit down for a while, and usually he'd have one of his freezing things, and sometimes one hand would twitch, like his jerking stuff. But then he'd wake back up and continue with what he was doing."

Dr. Sullivan nodded, letting out a sigh. Partials, then. While Kurt was used to having partials, he knew that no one enjoyed seizures. They seemed to be one of the worst for Kurt, as they always triggered bigger seizures. That was how the massive seizures normally occurred.

"Well, I don't want to adjust his medication dosage, because it hasn't had time to work. But I want him on an EEG for at least tonight, maybe have a few different EEG's. Maybe do a sleep-deprived EEG." Dr. Sullivan scratched the back of his head before he just sighed and shook his head.

"Let's just get him stabilized first. He's going to sleep deeply for a while. We placed a catheter because of how unresponsive he was in the ER. He awoke briefly while on his way up, but we've dosed him up to keep the Status state from returning. But he needs to rest. I don't want anyone else that may work him up, alright? I know Kurt is a bit of a diva sometimes, but we have got to keep him calm and resting. One Status state is difficult enough – this is the third one in that many months."

Burt nodded and gave his son's hand a small squeeze. God, he was so little. It seemed like he got littler each time Burt saw him in a bed like this. The first time he'd seen Kurt like this had been absolutely heart wrenching.

Kurt had been at dance – his mother had signed him up when he was five, and Burt couldn't take away something his son loved, no matter how much he detested the dance recitals – when it happened. Burt was sitting in the hallway, waiting to see his son. Kurt stumbled out of the dance room, and with glazed eyes, collapsed into his father's lap. At 6, the boy was about half of his father's side, but he managed to land himself smack dab in his father's lap.

It wasn't unusual for his son to wear himself out at dance. It seemed like it took more and more energy to keep up with every new move or dance style. Burt simply lifted his son into his arms, settling the light six-year-old into his hip as he stood.

"How was dance, bud?" Burt asked as he shifted Kurt into a more comfortable situation. Kurt buried his head in his father's neck, his right hand working to try and grasp at the front of his father's shirt. Then it dropped and laid limp.

Burt gently shook his son, trying to get his son to react. Then he felt something hitting his stomach, and looked down.

Kurt's right hand was shaking and twitching, and he made a slight whining noise. Then he fell still again. His body went completely limp, his head rolling off from where he had pushed it into his father's neck. Kurt's chin fell onto his chest, and he went to slip out of his father's arms, completely unconscious.

Burt caught him and gently laid the boy against his chest, gently calling for help. Moments later, he lost his grip on his son as the boy's body seized up, his arms curling against his chest as he fell into what would later be diagnosed as a Tonic-Clonic, or Grand Mal, Seizure.

The rest of the day flew by like a blur for Burt, ending with Burt holding his son as the boy underwent an EEG, though he fought and spit at the fact that he had to have glue put in his hair.

Burt fought the memories back, and looked down at his boy. Then he looked up at Dr. Sullivan.

"Whatever you want to do is fine by me," he said, gently stroking Kurt's cheek. His hand was still being held captive by his son's tight grip. Even though he was sedated, Kurt had the tightest grip on his father's hand, and he never let go.

"You got it, Burt. For now, let's let him rest. I'll allow you guys to stay, but no one else today, alright? He's going to be out until noon or so tomorrow," Dr. Sullivan dictated.

Dr. Sullivan did one more once-over with the machines and the IV Pole before he left, giving Burt a pat on the shoulder.

Once they were alone in the room, the other two gravitated toward sitting by Kurt's bedside. Burt let out a sigh as he tried to calm down. His son was safe. He was in the hospital and he was safe now.

But how much of a reprieve would they get before the next seizure took Kurt?