So hello! I don't really know how to begin this, because honestly I'm not sure how many people read Glee fan fiction anymore (hopefully a few), so I'll just jump right in! Basically I've had this plot for a while, and recently I finished reading One in Four by swinggirlatheart, and while it was wonderful and I loved it, I just could not handle that ending. Plus it inspired me to finally put this down on paper, even if no one reads it! So as a quick preface, the italics are the past, and normal font is present. I'll probably have one "past" section per chapter, just to fill in, and if all goes well, I have a few spin-offs planned. But yeah, if you read this, please enjoy, and don't hesitate to send me any comments, criticism is always welcome! I tried to do a good amount of research, but I definitely could've messed up, so just lemme know! (Also I am one of the world's worst spellers, and sometimes I mess up so bad Word doesn't even know what I'm saying, so I apologize in advance for that).
Blaine groaned, curling in a little further on himself. He was exhausted, his whole body ached, and he was starting to feel another wave of nausea coming. Glancing over at his phone, he fought the urge to call his sister, his brother, Wes, anyone really, reminding himself that they had lives that didn't involve comforting him. Feeling nausea sweep over him, Blaine grabbed the nearest trashcan and pulled it up to the edge of the couch; better safe than sorry. Not fully ready to lie on his incredibly tender back, he rolled onto his stomach, and decided it was time for a nap. Right as he began to drift off he heard quick footsteps in his room. Expecting a nurse, he looked up, but was instead greeted by an unfamiliar boy.
Slightly confused but really too tired to care, Blaine attempted to recognize this stranger. He was about average height, very thin, had a shaved head, and looked inexplicably nervous. Looking to meet his eyes, the boy flinched, holding a finger to his mouth as to make a "sh" sign. In a high whisper, the boy muttered "quiet, they can't find me."
If he wasn't confused before, Blaine sure as hell was now. He opened his mouth to ask why in the world this boy was in his room, and immediately regretted it. His stomach chose that very moment to rebel, and before he knew it he was puking up his last meal.
And that's when it began.
The strange boy was screaming, actually screaming, at the top of his lungs. He had pressed himself into a ball, somehow making himself looking even more tiny and vulnerable than before. He had his hands pressed tightly over his ears, and Blaine found himself wishing he could do the same. As if he didn't already have the world's worst headache. It took about 40 seconds of this ungodly screaming before Blaine's room was infiltrated by nurses, three of whom pulled the boy up, wrapping him tightly in their grasp, one of whom inserted a long needle into the boy's arm, and another who seemed to actually care how Blaine was dealing with this. Blaine watched in captivated shock as the boy slowing stopped kicking and screaming, and went limp in the nurse's arms. The four nurses gently placed the boy in a wheelchair, pushing the now comatose kid out of the room.
"Hey, hey you okay Blainers?" Blaine snapped out of his thoughts, remembering there was a fifth nurse attending to him. "Um…yeah I think so…" he replied, still entirely baffled by what he just saw. The nurse smiled sympathically, gently patting his shoulder.
"Don't worry about him," she said softly, "He escapes his ward from time to time. Your puking might have just saved a few nurses their skins!" She said this in a light, joking manner, but Blaine was stuck on the word "escapes."
"Would you like me to call your mom?" she said, breaking Blaine out of his head again. Blaine gently shook his head, not trusting his stomach enough to open his mouth. The nurse gave him yet another sympathic smile, nodding slightly before leaving the room.
Blaine readjusted again, trying to make sense of what he just saw. After about five minutes of wondering, he decided it wasn't worth it, and instead opted to finish that nap he was so looking forward to.
"Kurt! Kurt! Kurt! KURT!" Burt sighed, rubbing a hand through his non-existent hair. It was only 7 am and it was already not a good day. Grimacing, he turned to his stepson, who seemed to be entirely engrossed in his plate of Carole's famous pancakes. "Finn, can you go grab him?" Burt asked, a twinge of apology in his voice, "I need to lay out his meds and breakfast, because God knows he won't." Finn quickly nodded, unable to talk due to a full mouth. Shoving back his chair, he quickly darted over to the basement, uncerimounisly slamming the door behind him. Burt turned around, on high alert for yelling, while he carefully laid out a clean bowl, unopened cereal box, and a small cup with a miniature rainbow of pills. Observing to be sure there was nothing out that could be dangerous in case of a fit; Burt finally sat down next to his wife. Carole smiled gently, kissing him lightly on the cheek. "I'm sure he just slept in sweetie." Burt nodded tensely; they both knew that wasn't true.
After what felt like forever, but was actually only about three minutes, Finn returned, a sullen Kurt behind him. A twinge went through Burt's chest when he saw his son, though he had come to expect nothing different. Kurt was wearing a gray shirt that should fit him, but hung dangerously loosely on his too-small frame. His hair was disheveled, and his jeans had a stain from when he spilled chocolate milk yesterday. The bags under his eyes let Burt know his son probably hadn't slept much last night, which didn't surprise him in the least considering how poorly off his son was these days. Burt cleared his throat, deciding to at least take a crack at normality.
"So how'd you sleep last night Kurt?" Kurt tensed at being talked to, and muttered something under his breath quickly. Burt sighed, trying again. "Kurt you know the doctor said you have to speak up, no one can understand you when you mumble."
"I said I didn't. December didn't want to sleep, and it wasn't safe. Everyone was awake last night, they all were." Burt nodded his head. He expected as much. Kurt sat down next to him, scooting a tad closer, and looked with disdain at his pills. "I'm not taking those," he finally said. He stood up and grabbed himself another bowl and spoon, cleaning them before sitting back down and pouring a calculated amount of cereal. Burt gently grabbed the bowl he had laid out, and placed his hand on Kurt's shoulder. "Kurt yes you are. Dr. Tesle wouldn't be…"
"NO DR. TESLE," Kurt screamed, taking Finn by surprise, "I don't trust him he's one of them I'M NOT TAKING THEM." Kurt shoved the pills out of Burt's hand, and kicked them to the side. Burt sighed, knowing he was all too used to this.
"Kurt, watch your mouth or you'll be in real trouble. Now, you either take the pills or you go spend the day with Trent until you do." Burt watched as Kurt tensed, debating whether taking the meds was worth getting out of spending another full day with his sit-in nurse, or as Burt said, "Adult babysitter." Finally giving in, Kurt poured the medication into his mouth, lifting up his tongue to prove he wasn't hiding any. Satisfied, Burt clapped his son on the back. "There you go kiddo. Now Finn, you ready? Yes? Good, off to school kids." Finn jumped out of his chair, running to claim shotgun. Burt waited for Kurt to stand, then grabbed his backpack (the kid needed all the help he could get), quickly shoved a clean pair of sweats in, texted Trent to let him know Kurt would need to change, all while trying to make his son's hair look somewhat combed. With a quick peck on Carole's cheek, he pulled his son out the door, praying today would go okay.
"And don't forget you can call me as soon as you start to feel bad. If you start to feel bad that is, not saying you will, BUT if you do the second you do please-"
"Mom!" Blaine said, started to get a tad stressed after listening to her repeat the same phrase for the past hour. "I'll be fine-but," he added, seeing the worried look on her face, "IF, and only if, I don't, I'll be sure to let you know." Blaine leaned in, gently kissing his mom's forehead. "Please though, don't wait around by the phone all day. Go out and do something, get some coffee, live your life as if you didn't have kids." Mrs. Anderson gently laughed, Blaine knew her too well. She nodded slightly, wrapping him again in another hug. "Your sister is already there for her placement test, she'll keep an eye on you." Blaine nodded, feeling a tad nervous. Today marked his first day back in public school since his…incident and his first attempt at a full day since forever. His mom finally left his room, allowing his to finish getting ready in peace.
Blaine looked in the mirror, running his hand over his nearly bald head. It had been about three weeks since his last (hopefully) chemotherapy session, and even though a soft fuzz was covering his head, it wasn't nearly what it used to be. Today was going to be a hat kind of day. Pulling on his favorite beanie, Blaine took the chance to make sure his outfit was working. Although his clothes still didn't fit due to the weight loss treatment had caused, he thought he made it work, and with a sense of pride felt like his weight gain plan was working. He tightened his belt and retied his shoes, getting to a point of nervous fidgeting. He had heard too many stories of kids who, after chemo, couldn't succeed in school. His memory was a mess as it was, and he internally dreaded know he would have to fight through his "brain fog" for hours at school now. Actually, if he was being honest, everything about this new school scared him. Not having Wes and David and the other Warblers scared him, the prospect of not succeeding scared him, and the chance that someone might take his hat off scared him. Glancing at the clock, Blaine sighed with relief when he realized it was finally time to go. Wincing slightly as he slung his backpack on, hitting his still very sensitive back (thanks radiation); he put on his "everything is fine Mom" face as he headed downstairs. Time to get this over with.
So that was the first chapter! Hopefully you like it, and I'll be post again very soon for a while! Once I run out of my pre-written chapters I'll start posting on-maybe- weekends, but you won't have to worry about that for a while.
Over and out-Rachel