Fic: Sharp 2/3
Title: Sharp
Rating: R (for gore/violence/injury)
Pairings/Characters: Kurt/Blaine; New Directions
Spoilers: 3x11, "Michael"
Warnings: blood; severe injury; physical violence; medical squick
Word Count: 2900 this chapter (? overall)
Summary: Instead of a slushy, Sebastian brings a knife. Fill for this prompt on the glee_angst_meme.
Author's Note: Basically, it gets hairy. And squicky, probably. There's a lot of blood?
Thanks to preciousmellowfor the beta, and for putting up with me :D She's the actual fax best.
“Blaine Anderson?”
“That’s us. We’re with him,” Kurt says loudly enough to gain her attention, standing up. The nurse crosses the room to the small group, flipping through her clipboard.
“You’re here with Blaine?”
“Yes, please-how is he?”
“Are any of you family, love?”
“Not-not exactly, but you have to tell us something, please. He’s my boyfriend.”
“Unfortunately, we can only disclose his condition to his immediate family or a guardian. I know his brother is listed as an emergency contact, is there any way-”
“He’s still not picking up.” Kurt’s voice breaks, his eyes bright with unshed tears. He’s been trying to contact Blaine’s brother for two hours, but there’s no one picking up. “Please, you have to-we need to know if he’s okay.”
“I’m so sorry,” she says quietly, and Kurt can’t help but feel she isn’t sorry. She’s too detached-Blaine’s just another patient. She rests a hand on Kurt’s arm, looks him directly in the eye. “I suggest you get his family here as soon as you can.”
She turns on her heel, leaving them without another word, disappearing back into the ER proper. Kurt drops back into his chair, face in his hands as his shoulders shake.
“What does she mean?” Brittany asks quietly, wringing her hands as she looks around at the solemn faces of the group, everyone silent, lost in their own thoughts. “Kurt? Santana? I don’t-”
“Blaine’s hurt pretty badly, Brit,” Santana says quietly, taking Brittany’s hand in hers. Kurt chokes on a sob, shaking his head vigorously. Rachel slides next to him, pulls him into her arms and rocks back and forth, whispering. Brittany still looks confused.
“But why can’t they tell us where he is?”
“They need Blaine’s family, in case-” Santana trails off, searching for the easiest way to explain what’s happening.
“In case something bad happens during the surgery,” Quinn offers, joining Rachel next to Kurt and rubbing his arm affectionately.
“Something bad? You mean-is Blaine going to die?”
“He’s not dying.” Rachel speaks up when Kurt cries out again, clings a little more closely to her. Quinn tries to quiet him, whispers comforting words in his ear.
They don’t speaks for another ten minutes; no one looks at anyone else. Kurt’s sobs die down after a few minutes, but Rachel holds on, still rubbing his back.
“You said his brother is his emergency contact, Kurt?”
“Blaine lives with his older brother,” Kurt whispers, finally raising his head from Rachel’s shoulder. He wipes at his eyes with the edge of his scrub top, pulls Blaine’s phone from his pocket again. “His parents left him with Zach when Blaine was thirteen, but Zach’s always working. I’ve never met him.”
“You have his number?”
“They gave me Blaine’s phone when they-when they took his clothes. For evidence, or whatever. It’s in here.”
“You want me to call him again?” Finn offers, noticing the way Kurt’s fingers are trembling around the phone. Kurt shakes his head, extricates himself from Rachel’s arms.
“I should do it. I’ll just-I’m going to go outside.” Kurt walks away from the group, slips through the sliding doors. It’s cold, and he’s not wearing a coat, but he wraps his arms around his chest, hitting Zach’s number again and bringing the phone to his ear.
Zach answers after the third ring, voice altered somewhat by the wind on his end.
“Blaine? What’s going on buddy, I told you my meetings were going to run late, you know not to call me when-”
“Zach? Is this-you’re Blaine’s brother?”
“And you’re not Blaine. Who is this? How’d you get his phone?”
“My name’s Kurt Hummel. I’m-I’m Blaine’s boyfr-a friend of Blaine’s.”
“Blaine’s boyfriend.”
“Yeah.”
“Kurt, why are you calling me on my brother’s phone? Not that this chat isn’t long overdue, but I have to get to another meeting, and Blaine should-”
“Blaine’s in the hospital,” Kurt blurts out in a rush, wincing when he hears how rough his voice is.
“I’m sorry?”
“Blaine’s-we’re at the emergency room.”
“And is he okay?”
“He was-” Kurt hesitates, doesn’t know how to continue. Doesn’t want to say the words out loud. “He was stabbed.”
There’s a long silence, only Zach’s quiet breathing indicating that the call hasn’t disconnected.
“Blaine was stabbed,” Zach repeats, his voice quiet and laced with disbelief.
“Zach, I’m so sorry, I just-we didn’t know, none of us-”
“Blaine was stabbed.”
“In the leg. His thigh. He lost-he lost a lot of blood. They won’t tell us anything else, none of us are family, and-”
“Where are you?”
“Lima General. Zach-”
“I’ll be there in fifteen. Kurt-call me back if anything-if anything happens.”
The words hit Kurt hard, make him freeze up as Zach disconnects the call. He stares dumbly at the phone in his hand, blinking slowly. The concept that something could actually happen to Blaine hasn’t really settled yet, hasn’t really taken hold.
But the urgency of the nurse, the whispered words, the amount of blood-Kurt wonders if he should be preparing for the worst. He walks back to his friends in a daze, still looking at Blaine’s phone, not really seeing it.
“Did you get a hold of him?” Finn asks when Kurt approaches. Kurt looks up, stares blankly at Finn for a moment. “Kurt?”
“What? Oh, yeah. Yeah, I-he’s on his way.”
“That’s good, then, right? We’ll know something soon.”
“Yeah.”
Kurt retakes his seat, and they return to their silent vigil. Kurt thinks they must look ridiculous, twelve teenagers clustered around each other in an emergency room on a Friday night. Twenty minutes passes quickly without word on Blaine. The doors open for what seems like the thousandth time that night, and Kurt looks up on instinct.
He recognizes Zach Anderson instantly, from the pictures in Blaine’s room and the family resemblance. He stands, waves to gain Zach’s attention.
“Zach?”
“Kurt?” He crosses the room quickly, takes Kurt’s hand to shake. “And you guys are-”
“We’re in Glee club with Blaine.”
Zach nods, looking quickly around the group before focusing on Kurt again.
“What the hell happened?”
Kurt explains as quickly as he can, describes the confrontation with the Warblers, Sebastian pulling out the knife. He finishes with the arrival of the cops, the ambulance, ending up in the emergency room. Zach’s pale by the time Kurt finishes, and he runs a shaky hand through his hair, freeing some of it from the gel he wears.
“And you don’t know what’s going on?” Zach asks.
“They won’t tell us anything.”
“Okay. Okay. I’m going to get some information, see what’s happening. I’ll let you-just hang tight, I guess. I’ll be back.”
Zach heads toward the admit desk, is let back through the security door after showing his ID. He disappears after a moment, and New Directions is alone in the waiting room again. Kurt sighs, sits down in his chair.
“I guess we wait,” Finn says quietly, leaning back and stretching his legs in front of him.
- - - - -
Zach comes back after an hour, his face nearly translucent, his hair disheveled and bearing evidence of how many times he’s run his hands through it. He approaches the group again-none of them have left, they’ve all explained to their parents the importance of staying-and sighs heavily.
“Zach?” Kurt’s voice is timid, afraid. He almost doesn’t want to hear what’s wrong, what’s happened to Blaine.
“It’s bad.” Zach shrugs one shoulder, his voice heavy with sadness and exhaustion. Kurt’s heart drops, and he shakes his head.
“Did you see him?”
“He’s still in surgery. They’re almost done, they said they’ll take him to intensive care next.”
“What’s happening?” Kurt asks, searching Zach’s face for a clue.
Zach looks around at them, gauging how much to reveal, what to say.
“The knife hit his femoral artery. That’s why there was so much blood. The only reason he didn’t bleed out on the floor was because you left the knife in, and it helped slow the bleeding.”
“But-”
“But he’d lost a lot of blood by the time they got here. He, uh-his heart stopped. They brought him back, but he was down for awhile.”
“Oh, god.” Rachel’s crying openly again, but everyone else seems too stunned to really react. Blaine was practically dead, even if only for a matter of minutes. He almost died.
“He’s okay now?” Kurt asks, his voice small.
“They’ve been giving him blood transfusions the whole time he’s been here, throughout the surgery. They brought him straight to the operating room.”
“Will he-is he going to be okay? Zach?”
“They don’t know yet, Kurt. The blood loss alone-he lost most of his blood volume, and they can only replace it so quickly. The injury to his leg is bad, too. They had to take the knife out, repair the damage to the vessels and the rest of his leg. It’s too soon to tell.”
“What are they thinking though? They had to have told you something?” Kurt knows he’s being pushy, insistent, but this isn’t enough. He needs a definitive answer, needs to know if Blaine’s going to be okay.
“If he makes it through the night in ICU, his chances are pretty good. They think if he can make it the first twenty-four hours, his body will start to heal itself. It’s just-it’s going to be tough for the first day.”
“So he could still be okay?”
“We have to hope for the best,” Zach ends with a shrug, looking around at the group again. “You guys should go home. Even if they let him have visitors you won’t be allowed up there, so you might as well wait for news at home.”
“You’ll keep us updated?” Mike asks, already pulling on his coat, helping Tina into hers. He’s still visibly shaken, but stands up a bit taller, trying to push down his lingering fear.
“If Kurt leaves me his number, I can let him know-”
“I’m staying here.”
Kurt crosses his arms, levels Zach with what he hopes is a defiant stare. He’s not leaving, not after everything that’s happened and everything he’s been through. Zach meets his gaze, considers him.
“Kurt, they’re going to be strict on the family only rule. He’s going to be in intensive care, he’s going to be monitored closely, and you don’t want to see him like that.”
“I don’t care. He took that knife for me, I need-I have to make sure he’s going to be okay. Zach, please. You’re his guardian. You can make an exception.”
Zach looks Kurt up and down critically, takes a deep breath.
“Fine. But only you, Kurt. Everyone else-it’s going to be a long night. I’ll let him know you were here, though.”
The rest of the Glee Club leaves one by one, offering Kurt hugs and reassurance, but Finn and Rachel linger, waiting. Rachel reaches out, touches Kurt’s arm.
“Kurt, are you sure-”
“I need to see him, Rach. For myself.”
“I’ll tell Burt you’re not coming home,” Finn says after a moment, clapping Kurt on the shoulder. “I’ll explain everything to him. Just-give Blaine our best, okay? We’re thinking about him.”
Kurt nods, and he’s left alone with Blaine’s brother, the two of them sizing each other up awkwardly.
“So-”
“They told me to go wait up in the surgery waiting room. I guess-I’ll tell them to let you through, too. Let’s go.”
They end up sitting side-by-side in the surgery waiting room, tapping their feet in mirroring patterns while they wait for word. Zach gets pulled away after half an hour by Blaine’s doctor, comes back with a relieved look on his face.
“Everything went as well as they hoped. They’ve got him in recovery now, but they’ll be moving him to the ICU soon. He’s still low on blood volume, and his blood pressure’s not where they’d like it, but he did well. They’re optimistic.”
“And that’s a good thing?”
“Sounded like it. We just have to keep hoping for the best.”
“So now what?”
“They said we could wait out here, they’d bring us up to ICU when he’s settled in there.”
The elevator dings behind them, startling them both. Two police officers step out, heading directly for them.
“Zachary Anderson?”
“That’s me. What’s-how can I help you?”
“We hear your brother’s gonna pull through, the surgery went well?”
“That’s what we’re hoping. Is this about the kid who’s responsible for this?” Zach responds.
“We’ve got Sebastian Smythe in custody, yes. We came up to collect the knife for evidence, but the case seems fairly cut and dry with the number of witnesses, the physical evidence. We’re bringing him up on charges of physical assault and assault with a deadly weapon, among a few others.”
“And then?”
“Depending on how the hearing plays out, we may be calling on Blaine to testify. We’ll keep in touch, as will the prosecutor’s office.”
“But you’ve got him in custody?”
“We have,” the first officer respond. A scrub nurse comes through the doors, hands him the bloody knife in an evidence bag. “We’re glad to hear he’s doing well.”
Zach nods, and the officers are gone as soon as they’d arrived. Kurt sinks into his chair in relief, passing a hand over his eyes. Zach claps him on the shoulder, smiling.
“It’s going to be okay, Kurt. Blaine’s gonna be fine, and that Sebastian kid is going to get what’s coming to him. Everything’s going to be fine.”
“Anderson?”
Another nurse peeks her head around the door, smiling at Kurt and Zach. She walks over to them, holding out her hand.
“My name’s Ally, I’m here to take you up to ICU? Blaine’s just getting settled.”
She leads them into the elevator, keeping up a steady stream of chatter as they walk.
“He came out of the anesthesia well, his pain’s under control too. We’ve sedated him again just until he’s settled and a bit more comfortable, but the surgery went well, and he’ll hopefully heal up nicely.”
They pass through a door marked “Intensive Care Unit,” still following a half-step behind Ally. She pauses at the nurse’s station, checks the board-and Kurt can read B. Anderson, 8, scribbled across it, accompanied with a series of letters and codes-and leads them to the room marked 8.
“Blaine’s in here. I’m assuming-you’re both family?”
“Kurt’s with me, yeah.”
“Visiting hours are fairly strict in ICU, but given that Blaine’s just been admitted the staff is willing to make an exception tonight. Just a few things about his setup-Blaine’s no longer on a ventilator, but we do have him on supplementary oxygen, so there’s a tube under his nose providing that for him. There are several monitors around his bed, measuring his vital signs, and his leg is heavily bandaged. He’s also got a few IV’s, and we’re still working on catching up his blood volume with blood transfusions, as well as giving him some pain meds and regular fluids.”
She pauses to make sure they’ve understood, and holds her hand to the door, ready to slide it open.
Kurt gasps as soon as Blaine comes into view, tears pricking his eyes. Blaine looks tiny in the bed, surrounded by tubes and wires, the monitor above his head almost monstrous. The oxygen tubing Ally mentioned looks itchy and uncomfortable, and Kurt’s fingers twitch to reach for it, pull it away.
Blaine’s eyes are closed, but he looks peaceful-there are no lines of pain on his face, no evidence of the suffering he’s gone through. Kurt prefers this to the blood-covered Blaine on the parking lot floor, and he crosses a few steps to the bed, takes Blaine’s hand.
“Blaine? Honey, I’m-I’m here.”
Kurt doesn’t notice Ally slipping away, Zach sitting in the chair next to the bed. He only has eyes for Blaine. He runs a gentle thumb over the back of Blaine’s hand, unaware he’s crying until a tear drops down onto the bed.
“God, Blaine.”
“He’s okay, Kurt.”
“He looks so vulnerable like this.”
“He’s always looked like that when he’s hurt.”
Kurt knows Zach is talking about Sadie Hawkins, knows Zach’s seen Blaine hurt like this more than anyone should. He pulls up a second chair, rests his head next to Blaine’s hand and entwines their fingers.
“He really loves you, Kurt. You’re all he talks about at home.”
“I didn’t think he talked about me. I didn’t think he was comfortable with it.”
“I’m nothing like our dad. Our parents are assholes. If Blaine thinks you’re worth loving, that’s good enough for me. You care about him too, don’t you?”
“More than I think he knows.”
“Don’t let that change.”
Kurt nods, closing his eyes and resting his head against Blaine’s hand. He doesn’t realize he’s fallen asleep until he starts awake, Blaine’s fingers brushing unsteadily through his hair.
Kurt sits up, looks to Zach, who’s snoring softly in opposite chair. Blaine’s eyes are open, hazy but focused on Kurt, and a tiny smile is tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“You’re awake.”
“Hey,” Blaine rasps, his voice barely audible in the room. Kurt smiles, rests his hand along Blaine’s cheek.
“Hey.”
Kurt lets out a laugh, returning Blaine’s smile.
“Welcome back.”
Rating: R (for gore/violence/injury)
Pairings/Characters: Kurt/Blaine; New Directions
Spoilers: 3x11, "Michael"
Warnings: blood; severe injury; physical violence; medical squick
Word Count: 2900 this chapter (? overall)
Summary: Instead of a slushy, Sebastian brings a knife. Fill for this prompt on the glee_angst_meme.
Author's Note: Basically, it gets hairy. And squicky, probably. There's a lot of blood?
Thanks to preciousmellowfor the beta, and for putting up with me :D She's the actual fax best.
“Blaine Anderson?”
“That’s us. We’re with him,” Kurt says loudly enough to gain her attention, standing up. The nurse crosses the room to the small group, flipping through her clipboard.
“You’re here with Blaine?”
“Yes, please-how is he?”
“Are any of you family, love?”
“Not-not exactly, but you have to tell us something, please. He’s my boyfriend.”
“Unfortunately, we can only disclose his condition to his immediate family or a guardian. I know his brother is listed as an emergency contact, is there any way-”
“He’s still not picking up.” Kurt’s voice breaks, his eyes bright with unshed tears. He’s been trying to contact Blaine’s brother for two hours, but there’s no one picking up. “Please, you have to-we need to know if he’s okay.”
“I’m so sorry,” she says quietly, and Kurt can’t help but feel she isn’t sorry. She’s too detached-Blaine’s just another patient. She rests a hand on Kurt’s arm, looks him directly in the eye. “I suggest you get his family here as soon as you can.”
She turns on her heel, leaving them without another word, disappearing back into the ER proper. Kurt drops back into his chair, face in his hands as his shoulders shake.
“What does she mean?” Brittany asks quietly, wringing her hands as she looks around at the solemn faces of the group, everyone silent, lost in their own thoughts. “Kurt? Santana? I don’t-”
“Blaine’s hurt pretty badly, Brit,” Santana says quietly, taking Brittany’s hand in hers. Kurt chokes on a sob, shaking his head vigorously. Rachel slides next to him, pulls him into her arms and rocks back and forth, whispering. Brittany still looks confused.
“But why can’t they tell us where he is?”
“They need Blaine’s family, in case-” Santana trails off, searching for the easiest way to explain what’s happening.
“In case something bad happens during the surgery,” Quinn offers, joining Rachel next to Kurt and rubbing his arm affectionately.
“Something bad? You mean-is Blaine going to die?”
“He’s not dying.” Rachel speaks up when Kurt cries out again, clings a little more closely to her. Quinn tries to quiet him, whispers comforting words in his ear.
They don’t speaks for another ten minutes; no one looks at anyone else. Kurt’s sobs die down after a few minutes, but Rachel holds on, still rubbing his back.
“You said his brother is his emergency contact, Kurt?”
“Blaine lives with his older brother,” Kurt whispers, finally raising his head from Rachel’s shoulder. He wipes at his eyes with the edge of his scrub top, pulls Blaine’s phone from his pocket again. “His parents left him with Zach when Blaine was thirteen, but Zach’s always working. I’ve never met him.”
“You have his number?”
“They gave me Blaine’s phone when they-when they took his clothes. For evidence, or whatever. It’s in here.”
“You want me to call him again?” Finn offers, noticing the way Kurt’s fingers are trembling around the phone. Kurt shakes his head, extricates himself from Rachel’s arms.
“I should do it. I’ll just-I’m going to go outside.” Kurt walks away from the group, slips through the sliding doors. It’s cold, and he’s not wearing a coat, but he wraps his arms around his chest, hitting Zach’s number again and bringing the phone to his ear.
Zach answers after the third ring, voice altered somewhat by the wind on his end.
“Blaine? What’s going on buddy, I told you my meetings were going to run late, you know not to call me when-”
“Zach? Is this-you’re Blaine’s brother?”
“And you’re not Blaine. Who is this? How’d you get his phone?”
“My name’s Kurt Hummel. I’m-I’m Blaine’s boyfr-a friend of Blaine’s.”
“Blaine’s boyfriend.”
“Yeah.”
“Kurt, why are you calling me on my brother’s phone? Not that this chat isn’t long overdue, but I have to get to another meeting, and Blaine should-”
“Blaine’s in the hospital,” Kurt blurts out in a rush, wincing when he hears how rough his voice is.
“I’m sorry?”
“Blaine’s-we’re at the emergency room.”
“And is he okay?”
“He was-” Kurt hesitates, doesn’t know how to continue. Doesn’t want to say the words out loud. “He was stabbed.”
There’s a long silence, only Zach’s quiet breathing indicating that the call hasn’t disconnected.
“Blaine was stabbed,” Zach repeats, his voice quiet and laced with disbelief.
“Zach, I’m so sorry, I just-we didn’t know, none of us-”
“Blaine was stabbed.”
“In the leg. His thigh. He lost-he lost a lot of blood. They won’t tell us anything else, none of us are family, and-”
“Where are you?”
“Lima General. Zach-”
“I’ll be there in fifteen. Kurt-call me back if anything-if anything happens.”
The words hit Kurt hard, make him freeze up as Zach disconnects the call. He stares dumbly at the phone in his hand, blinking slowly. The concept that something could actually happen to Blaine hasn’t really settled yet, hasn’t really taken hold.
But the urgency of the nurse, the whispered words, the amount of blood-Kurt wonders if he should be preparing for the worst. He walks back to his friends in a daze, still looking at Blaine’s phone, not really seeing it.
“Did you get a hold of him?” Finn asks when Kurt approaches. Kurt looks up, stares blankly at Finn for a moment. “Kurt?”
“What? Oh, yeah. Yeah, I-he’s on his way.”
“That’s good, then, right? We’ll know something soon.”
“Yeah.”
Kurt retakes his seat, and they return to their silent vigil. Kurt thinks they must look ridiculous, twelve teenagers clustered around each other in an emergency room on a Friday night. Twenty minutes passes quickly without word on Blaine. The doors open for what seems like the thousandth time that night, and Kurt looks up on instinct.
He recognizes Zach Anderson instantly, from the pictures in Blaine’s room and the family resemblance. He stands, waves to gain Zach’s attention.
“Zach?”
“Kurt?” He crosses the room quickly, takes Kurt’s hand to shake. “And you guys are-”
“We’re in Glee club with Blaine.”
Zach nods, looking quickly around the group before focusing on Kurt again.
“What the hell happened?”
Kurt explains as quickly as he can, describes the confrontation with the Warblers, Sebastian pulling out the knife. He finishes with the arrival of the cops, the ambulance, ending up in the emergency room. Zach’s pale by the time Kurt finishes, and he runs a shaky hand through his hair, freeing some of it from the gel he wears.
“And you don’t know what’s going on?” Zach asks.
“They won’t tell us anything.”
“Okay. Okay. I’m going to get some information, see what’s happening. I’ll let you-just hang tight, I guess. I’ll be back.”
Zach heads toward the admit desk, is let back through the security door after showing his ID. He disappears after a moment, and New Directions is alone in the waiting room again. Kurt sighs, sits down in his chair.
“I guess we wait,” Finn says quietly, leaning back and stretching his legs in front of him.
- - - - -
Zach comes back after an hour, his face nearly translucent, his hair disheveled and bearing evidence of how many times he’s run his hands through it. He approaches the group again-none of them have left, they’ve all explained to their parents the importance of staying-and sighs heavily.
“Zach?” Kurt’s voice is timid, afraid. He almost doesn’t want to hear what’s wrong, what’s happened to Blaine.
“It’s bad.” Zach shrugs one shoulder, his voice heavy with sadness and exhaustion. Kurt’s heart drops, and he shakes his head.
“Did you see him?”
“He’s still in surgery. They’re almost done, they said they’ll take him to intensive care next.”
“What’s happening?” Kurt asks, searching Zach’s face for a clue.
Zach looks around at them, gauging how much to reveal, what to say.
“The knife hit his femoral artery. That’s why there was so much blood. The only reason he didn’t bleed out on the floor was because you left the knife in, and it helped slow the bleeding.”
“But-”
“But he’d lost a lot of blood by the time they got here. He, uh-his heart stopped. They brought him back, but he was down for awhile.”
“Oh, god.” Rachel’s crying openly again, but everyone else seems too stunned to really react. Blaine was practically dead, even if only for a matter of minutes. He almost died.
“He’s okay now?” Kurt asks, his voice small.
“They’ve been giving him blood transfusions the whole time he’s been here, throughout the surgery. They brought him straight to the operating room.”
“Will he-is he going to be okay? Zach?”
“They don’t know yet, Kurt. The blood loss alone-he lost most of his blood volume, and they can only replace it so quickly. The injury to his leg is bad, too. They had to take the knife out, repair the damage to the vessels and the rest of his leg. It’s too soon to tell.”
“What are they thinking though? They had to have told you something?” Kurt knows he’s being pushy, insistent, but this isn’t enough. He needs a definitive answer, needs to know if Blaine’s going to be okay.
“If he makes it through the night in ICU, his chances are pretty good. They think if he can make it the first twenty-four hours, his body will start to heal itself. It’s just-it’s going to be tough for the first day.”
“So he could still be okay?”
“We have to hope for the best,” Zach ends with a shrug, looking around at the group again. “You guys should go home. Even if they let him have visitors you won’t be allowed up there, so you might as well wait for news at home.”
“You’ll keep us updated?” Mike asks, already pulling on his coat, helping Tina into hers. He’s still visibly shaken, but stands up a bit taller, trying to push down his lingering fear.
“If Kurt leaves me his number, I can let him know-”
“I’m staying here.”
Kurt crosses his arms, levels Zach with what he hopes is a defiant stare. He’s not leaving, not after everything that’s happened and everything he’s been through. Zach meets his gaze, considers him.
“Kurt, they’re going to be strict on the family only rule. He’s going to be in intensive care, he’s going to be monitored closely, and you don’t want to see him like that.”
“I don’t care. He took that knife for me, I need-I have to make sure he’s going to be okay. Zach, please. You’re his guardian. You can make an exception.”
Zach looks Kurt up and down critically, takes a deep breath.
“Fine. But only you, Kurt. Everyone else-it’s going to be a long night. I’ll let him know you were here, though.”
The rest of the Glee Club leaves one by one, offering Kurt hugs and reassurance, but Finn and Rachel linger, waiting. Rachel reaches out, touches Kurt’s arm.
“Kurt, are you sure-”
“I need to see him, Rach. For myself.”
“I’ll tell Burt you’re not coming home,” Finn says after a moment, clapping Kurt on the shoulder. “I’ll explain everything to him. Just-give Blaine our best, okay? We’re thinking about him.”
Kurt nods, and he’s left alone with Blaine’s brother, the two of them sizing each other up awkwardly.
“So-”
“They told me to go wait up in the surgery waiting room. I guess-I’ll tell them to let you through, too. Let’s go.”
- - - - -
They end up sitting side-by-side in the surgery waiting room, tapping their feet in mirroring patterns while they wait for word. Zach gets pulled away after half an hour by Blaine’s doctor, comes back with a relieved look on his face.
“Everything went as well as they hoped. They’ve got him in recovery now, but they’ll be moving him to the ICU soon. He’s still low on blood volume, and his blood pressure’s not where they’d like it, but he did well. They’re optimistic.”
“And that’s a good thing?”
“Sounded like it. We just have to keep hoping for the best.”
“So now what?”
“They said we could wait out here, they’d bring us up to ICU when he’s settled in there.”
The elevator dings behind them, startling them both. Two police officers step out, heading directly for them.
“Zachary Anderson?”
“That’s me. What’s-how can I help you?”
“We hear your brother’s gonna pull through, the surgery went well?”
“That’s what we’re hoping. Is this about the kid who’s responsible for this?” Zach responds.
“We’ve got Sebastian Smythe in custody, yes. We came up to collect the knife for evidence, but the case seems fairly cut and dry with the number of witnesses, the physical evidence. We’re bringing him up on charges of physical assault and assault with a deadly weapon, among a few others.”
“And then?”
“Depending on how the hearing plays out, we may be calling on Blaine to testify. We’ll keep in touch, as will the prosecutor’s office.”
“But you’ve got him in custody?”
“We have,” the first officer respond. A scrub nurse comes through the doors, hands him the bloody knife in an evidence bag. “We’re glad to hear he’s doing well.”
Zach nods, and the officers are gone as soon as they’d arrived. Kurt sinks into his chair in relief, passing a hand over his eyes. Zach claps him on the shoulder, smiling.
“It’s going to be okay, Kurt. Blaine’s gonna be fine, and that Sebastian kid is going to get what’s coming to him. Everything’s going to be fine.”
“Anderson?”
Another nurse peeks her head around the door, smiling at Kurt and Zach. She walks over to them, holding out her hand.
“My name’s Ally, I’m here to take you up to ICU? Blaine’s just getting settled.”
She leads them into the elevator, keeping up a steady stream of chatter as they walk.
“He came out of the anesthesia well, his pain’s under control too. We’ve sedated him again just until he’s settled and a bit more comfortable, but the surgery went well, and he’ll hopefully heal up nicely.”
They pass through a door marked “Intensive Care Unit,” still following a half-step behind Ally. She pauses at the nurse’s station, checks the board-and Kurt can read B. Anderson, 8, scribbled across it, accompanied with a series of letters and codes-and leads them to the room marked 8.
“Blaine’s in here. I’m assuming-you’re both family?”
“Kurt’s with me, yeah.”
“Visiting hours are fairly strict in ICU, but given that Blaine’s just been admitted the staff is willing to make an exception tonight. Just a few things about his setup-Blaine’s no longer on a ventilator, but we do have him on supplementary oxygen, so there’s a tube under his nose providing that for him. There are several monitors around his bed, measuring his vital signs, and his leg is heavily bandaged. He’s also got a few IV’s, and we’re still working on catching up his blood volume with blood transfusions, as well as giving him some pain meds and regular fluids.”
She pauses to make sure they’ve understood, and holds her hand to the door, ready to slide it open.
Kurt gasps as soon as Blaine comes into view, tears pricking his eyes. Blaine looks tiny in the bed, surrounded by tubes and wires, the monitor above his head almost monstrous. The oxygen tubing Ally mentioned looks itchy and uncomfortable, and Kurt’s fingers twitch to reach for it, pull it away.
Blaine’s eyes are closed, but he looks peaceful-there are no lines of pain on his face, no evidence of the suffering he’s gone through. Kurt prefers this to the blood-covered Blaine on the parking lot floor, and he crosses a few steps to the bed, takes Blaine’s hand.
“Blaine? Honey, I’m-I’m here.”
Kurt doesn’t notice Ally slipping away, Zach sitting in the chair next to the bed. He only has eyes for Blaine. He runs a gentle thumb over the back of Blaine’s hand, unaware he’s crying until a tear drops down onto the bed.
“God, Blaine.”
“He’s okay, Kurt.”
“He looks so vulnerable like this.”
“He’s always looked like that when he’s hurt.”
Kurt knows Zach is talking about Sadie Hawkins, knows Zach’s seen Blaine hurt like this more than anyone should. He pulls up a second chair, rests his head next to Blaine’s hand and entwines their fingers.
“He really loves you, Kurt. You’re all he talks about at home.”
“I didn’t think he talked about me. I didn’t think he was comfortable with it.”
“I’m nothing like our dad. Our parents are assholes. If Blaine thinks you’re worth loving, that’s good enough for me. You care about him too, don’t you?”
“More than I think he knows.”
“Don’t let that change.”
Kurt nods, closing his eyes and resting his head against Blaine’s hand. He doesn’t realize he’s fallen asleep until he starts awake, Blaine’s fingers brushing unsteadily through his hair.
Kurt sits up, looks to Zach, who’s snoring softly in opposite chair. Blaine’s eyes are open, hazy but focused on Kurt, and a tiny smile is tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“You’re awake.”
“Hey,” Blaine rasps, his voice barely audible in the room. Kurt smiles, rests his hand along Blaine’s cheek.
“Hey.”
Kurt lets out a laugh, returning Blaine’s smile.
“Welcome back.”