"It has been a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. My mom says some days are like that."

~Judith Viorst, Alexander and the No Good, Very Bad Day

As they entered the clearing around Cooper's cabin, Blaine and Kurt heard loud noises coming from the open window.

“What's that?” Kurt asked, turning to look at his husband. Blaine looked bewildered for a minute, turning his head to hear better. Then he got an awful look of shock on his face – followed by a huge grin.

“Me thinks that my brother is having a bit of fun!” he crowed, laughing. Kurt listened to the wails coming from the cabin and a grin crept across his own face.

“I wonder who the lucky lady is?” Blaine said, blushing at the panting moans coming from the window of Cooper's bedroom.

They sat down on the porch to wait and see who came out the door. It did sound as if they were almost done.

Just as twilight descended on the forest, the door opened and Cooper came out, holding his lover in his arms and kissing.....unaware of his visitors.

“Want to go for a romantic walk?” he asked the person in his arms. Both Blaine and Kurt's heads snapped around as they heard the answer from the mouth of Cooper's lover....

“That sounds wonderful!”

Then there was a silence as all four stood staring at each other.

“Ah....Blaine. Kurt. How long have you been here?” Cooper asked, his face was deep red with blushing. His wavy black hair was messy in a post-sex way and his blue eyes were bright and sparkling.

“Long enough. So, how long have you two been hiding this from me?”

“Hey, it isn't like that....” August Waverly said, his face even deeper red than Cooper's.

Kurt was late to figure it all out, his mouth still open as he stared at his brother-in-law.

“That's why the two of you are always together,” Kurt smiled, overjoyed to find that Cooper indeed had a sex life. He'd often worried about the man he assumed was lonely. Apparently he wasn't.

Blaine lowered himself into a willow chair on the porch and Kurt sat down beside him. August and Cooper sat together on the settee, holding hands and stammering through a few starts and stops of the conversation. It was awkward and took some time before any of them could say a whole sentence.

“I have been meaning to tell you...” Cooper started, just as Blaine began by asking how long they had been together.

“Well, about that...” Cooper started to say, then he just sat and rubbed his forehead.

“Since we were teenagers,” August said, then looked away. He didn't mean to upset Cooper, but that was evident.

“Okay...” Blaine said and sat back. Kurt took his hand and gave him a gentle squeeze.

“It's like this...I didn't know how to tell Dad. I didn't know how he would react and by the time I'd gotten up the courage, you had come out to him. I didn't want to steal your thunder, Squirt. You always had such trouble talking to him and you two finally got on the same page. I wasn't about to ruin that with my own revelation. By the time he'd accepted you and I thought I had a chance to tell him – well, he was gone.”

“Coop, Dad has been gone a long, long time. Don't tell me in all those years – you never once found a time that seemed right to tell me?” Blaine accused his brother, now over the initial shock and well on his way to full-blown anger.

“It wasn't like that, Blaine,” August tried to explain, but Blaine shot him a look that stilled his tongue. This was obviously between the Anderson brothers.

“How about you and I go get something to drink?” Kurt offered, getting up and taking August's hand to help him up and they entered Cooper's cabin.

“How do you think that's going to come out?” Kurt asked August, nodding at the closed door that led to the porch. There wasn't a sound to be heard.

“They might fight, or they might get quiet for a while – depends on how hurt Blaine is. But they always see eye-to-eye after a while. I don't need to tell you how they depend on each other,” Augie told him. Kurt rolled his eyes. He knew how stubborn Blaine could be and imagined Cooper could be the same.

He put some mugs on a tray and set the hot coffee pot beside them. August reached up into a cupboard and brought down a dusty bottle of Scotch whisky, spilling a bit into each mug and winking at Kurt.

“I think it's okay to go back out. I don't hear any breaking of furniture or anything,” August said.

The two men walked out and noticed first that the Anderson's weren't sitting on the porch any more. Kurt looked around, thinking they might have decided to take a walk or something when he heard the sound of flesh hitting flesh. Hard. It was a sound he had wished he'd never hear again after the fight back in Lima so many years ago when Blaine had defended him during a fight with a gang of bullies. It made his stomach pull up into a knot and his hands turn numb.

August had set the tray of mugs on a table and was running around to the back of the house – Kurt on his heels.

“Blaine!” Kurt shouted as he rounded the corner, seeing his husband and brother-in-law with their fists up in defensive poses and Cooper hit Blaine in the chin when his attention was pulled to Kurt's shout.

“Oh, you want to fight dirty? Okay,” Blaine growled and ducked down, letting his brother have a sock to his belly, doubling him over for a moment in which Blaine used to hit him in the cheek. Cooper came up with a growl and swept Blaine's feet. In retrospect, Blaine wouldn't have gone over if he didn't have the cast on his ankle. It was heavy and took a moment longer to lift from the ground. He went down hard on the cold ground, wincing at the pain. Kurt and August had arrived and each threw their arms around a man....August holding Cooper back and Kurt trying to see how badly hurt Blaine was.

“What the bloody fuck are you two doing?” August roared, staring at Cooper. “That was unfair and you know it. And boxing without gloves? How stupid are you?”

Kurt said nothing, his arms around Blaine as the man struggled to get loose and get back to punching his brother.

“Stop, Blaine. Please, just stop,” Kurt begged, brushing Blaine's hair from his forehead. That was a mistake as it showed the cut that went across his skin, which began to bleed even more. Kurt took his clean handkerchief from his pocket and mopped up the worst of it, then held pressure on it to stop the bleeding.

“What happened?” he asked, looking at Cooper.

“He is angry at me, so I suggested he put all that venom into a fight. He is not going to forgive me he says, for keeping Augie and I a secret,” Cooper muttered, pushing August back. He turned and stalked back to the porch where they heard him throw himself into a chair. August followed, looking like he wanted to fight someone.

Kurt just pulled Blaine closer, kissing his cheek – the one that wasn't bruised.

“Baby, you shouldn't have done that. Why? How could you be so angry at him just keeping a secret? Maybe he wasn't ready to come out and having us find them in a compromising position just spooked him?” Kurt suggested, trying to understand why violence was the first thing the Anderson brothers thought of. It went against everything he'd been taught as a kid and he still believed it. Blaine reached for his lag and rubbed the outside of his cast. He didn't want Kurt to know how badly the fall had hurt or he'd be in worse trouble.

Kurt, who was still holding his mug, though at least a third of it had spilled, handed it to Blaine. He downed the whole thing and shook his head. He wasn't used to drinking whisky.

“I don't know. I just felt betrayed. If I'd have had him to talk to back then...I never talked to anyone before I met you. I was scared to, and I thought Cooper wouldn't understand, that he would hate me. And to find out now that I could have had a shoulder to cry on, someone in my corner? I just....” he shook his head.

“Yeah, I can see that. Was it that hard? You never said it was...I am so sorry, baby, so sorry,” Kurt said, hugging Blaine close to him. His poor husband, going through that alone and then losing his dad. He didn't know what to do, what to say. Maybe he'd have thought that hitting was the answer of he'd have been faced with that, too.

“No, it wasn't awful – not like being beat up and thrown in a railcar because they thought I was dead. You went through much worse. No, mine was just not having anyone who understood. And I was okay with it, I survived, but to know I could have had a brother who did understand? Who could have helped me through it? Yeah, that hurts.”

Blaine shook his head as if to rid himself of the bad thoughts. He allowed Kurt to help him to his feet and limped worse on his broken ankle. He finally let Kurt put his arm over his shoulder and almost carry him back to the porch. August saw Kurt struggling and rushed over to help, picking Blaine up and carrying him the rest of the way.

“You okay, kid?” Cooper asked, looking ashamed of himself.

“No help from you,” Blaine snapped, dabbing the soaking handkerchief to his bleeding forehead again. August went into the cabin and came out with a first-aid kit and handed it to Kurt.

Kurt took another mug of coffee and handed it to Blaine, who took a small sip, then a long drag. He took several more before he set the mug down. August and Cooper drank their Scotch-laced coffee, too. He busied himself cleaning up the cut on Blaine's face.

“Can you get two bags of frozen veggies from your freezer? Peas or corn would be best,” he said to August, who got up to help. He returned with two bags and two tea towels to wrap them in. Kurt gave one to each brother, who dutifully put them on their fast-swelling eyes. Both would end up with black eyes it seemed. Kurt rolled his eyes at the thought.

“Okay, now what can we do to fix this?” he asked, looking from one brother to the other.

“Nothing,” the Anderson's said in the same breath, glaring at each other.

“Another round?” he said, looking at August, who went back for the bottle of Scotch.

They drank another round, this time Kurt drank half and set it down. They sat together on the porch for quite a while without talking until Cooper sighed and hung his head.

“Squirt...” he started.

“Don't call me that,” Blaine growled, glaring at his brother.

“Sorry. Blaine, I am sorry. I know there are no words I can say to change what I did. I know I was wrong, and I knew that a long time ago, but I didn't know how to fix it. Augie told me so many times that we needed to tell you – he and I fought over it for a long time until he gave up and just quit talking about it. Please don't blame him, I wouldn't let him tell you. I was too ashamed, not because I am gay but because I didn't tell you when you needed me the most. I love you, Blaine, and there is no excuse. I don't blame you for hating me,” he said.

“I don't hate you. You hurt me so badly, though. I needed you and you let me down,” Blaine said. He took another drink – his fourth – and swayed in his seat. He was drunk.

“Cooper? Why did you hate me so much?” Blaine asked, trying to blink his eyes so he could see clearly.

“Oh, Blainey, I never hated you,” Cooper said, almost as drunk himself.

“Yes, you did. If you cared one little bit about me you would never have left me with that cold-hearted bitch, Eloise Warner!” Blaine shouted, gritting his teeth and looking away for a moment before turning back. “She never let me cry over losing Dad. She told me to buck up and not disturb Lenore. Poor pitiful Lenore, whose fault it was that Dad died. If she hadn't been following me and then hiding in that old shack, she wouldn't have been in there when the sparks from the fire landed in the roof. She didn't come out – she still hid in there until it was too late! When she started screaming, Dad went in to save her and the beam fell on him and he couldn't get out. He burned to death and it was her fault.

“I had to share a room with the girl who killed my father and where were you? Up on the mountain sawing lumber and apparently fucking Augie. I cried for dad, but I cried myself to sleep every night wanting you to be there with me. You fucking abandoned me, Cooper, to that horrible woman. How am I ever to get over that?” Blaine asked and Kurt put his arms around Blaine, holding him close. August patted Cooper's shoulder to calm him down when he saw the tears start coming down his boyfriend's cheeks. The tears didn't stop, they just increased, as did Blaine's. Cooper took his mug and drank it dry.

“Blaine, I didn't know. I was so full of my own grief – and I thought they were taking care of you! Mr Warner told me you were okay. I came down on the weekends to see you...”

“I seemed okay to him because I wasn't crying. Mrs. Warner told me I couldn't because it upset Lenore after her surgeries. I was scared of her and I forced myself not to cry. Yes, you came on the weekends – but we sat in the Warner's house and I couldn't tell you in front of them,” Blaine said, leaning on Kurt's shoulder but staring at his brother.

“Oh, my god, kid...I was still a kid myself. I was seventeen when Dad died. I didn't know what to do. I was too young to have the responsibility of being your parent all of a sudden, when I was so broken up about Dad. I remembered when Mom died, and it was that hurt and pain all over again. You were too young to remember that – she was there one day and gone the next, and Dad never let me talk about her again. Then he was gone and I was left to take care of you. I'm sorry, Blaine. I was never good enough....” Cooper sobbed, hiding his face in August's chest, the man's arms going around him automatically.

“Blaine, that's all true. Cooper was so lost. He wanted to care for you, but he didn't know how. He thought your dad would have wanted you to be with the Warner's. They were adults, they were responsible, and they told him to let them have you. You were only ten! Nobody wanted you to go to Social Services. That's what would have happened,” August said, combing his fingers through Cooper's silky black hair.

“I didn't know...” Blaine whispered. “I thought he didn't want me...”

“Oh, Blaine, no! Cooper loved you. He wanted you, but that was before he'd found out about your dad's money and Russell Mountain. He thought he had to keep working to provide for you,” August said.

“Wait...what? What about Russell Mountain?” Kurt looked confused. He knew the name, he'd been with Blaine surveying the mountain earlier that year. That was where he'd gotten the saddle sores.

“Nothing...” Blaine said, glaring at August, who looked confused himself.

“Just that they were...ah...thinking about harvesting back then on Russell. They changed their minds,” Cooper said quickly and something was exchanged between the brothers that consisted of a few facial expressions and shrugged shoulders.

“No...wait. It's more than that. What the hell's going on here. August?” Kurt looked at the man with an expression of anger. August shrank back and looked at Blaine, who looked at Cooper.

“This is a discussion for another day maybe,” Cooper said, trying to get out of it.

“No. No, it's not. Looks like all the secrets are being laid out on the table. Spill. All of you,” Kurt said in a commanding voice. Blaine looked at him, resigned, then turned to August.

“Okay. I didn't know it was a secret anymore. I'm sorry if I caused anything,” he shrugged, looking at Blaine with an apologetic stare. “Sterling Anderson and Braydon Warner were partners. Their fathers and grandfathers has been harvesting lumber from Mt Warner for decades. Warner's owned 75% and Anderson's owned 25% in the beginning, back in the 1800s and it stayed that way for a long time. Devon Anderson, Cooper and Blaine's grandfather, took his money and began buying land. He bought a lot of it on Russell Mountain, for years, until he had almost as much as the Warners. Sterling did the same and by the time he died, he owned most of that mountain. Well, Mr. Warner wanted in on it and when Sterling died – and Brayden knew that Sterling had given his life to save Lenore – he redid the ownership papers and gave his part of Russell to Cooper and Blaine,” August stopped for a breath and Kurt interrupted.

“So, Blaine and Cooper own Russell Mountain? Not Mr. Warner?” he asked, looking at Blaine.

“Yes. Actually, they own part of the Warner Lumber Company, too,” August said before Cooper could shut him up.

“Oh. Does Blaine know this?” Kurt asked, thinking it was a secret from his husband, too. He looked at Blaine and had his answer. The man blushed red and then hung his head, nodding it.

“Okay. Were you ever going to tell me this?” he asked, still looking confused.

“Yes, Kurt, I was. I just hadn't found the time and place to do it yet,” he said, looking into Kurt's eyes and begging forgiveness.

“In all the time we've known each other? You never once found the time and place to tell me you're responsible for an entire, huge company?” Kurt said, incredulous.

“It's a big thing...” began Cooper, feeling sorry for his brother in his predicament.

“Yes...like something you might tell your husband before you marry him,” Kurt snarked, his confusion turning to anger and he felt betrayed. He pulled back, leaving Blaine to hold himself up.

“On the good side....congratulations, you're a millionaire!” Cooper said, a smile on his face, hoping this aspect might soften the blow.

Kurt's blistering glare could peel paint off a wall and Cooper shuddered, feeling scared for his little brother.

“Oh, Kurt....I was planning to tell you. It doesn't matter, I am still the same,” Blaine said, hoping this might mean something.

“Yes, I suppose you are. The same man who is married to me but keeping secrets,” Kurt said with caustic inflection as he frowned.

“Baby...” Blaine started but Kurt's glare made him shut up while he was ahead.

Kurt got up and headed into the cabin.

Blaine got up but fell with a scream as he grabbed his leg, curling up on the wooden planks of the porch. Kurt whirled around and was down on the porch floor almost as fast as Cooper.

“Blaine!” they both shouted, scrambling to hold him. Moving him caused another scream and everyone backed up a few inches.

“Where does it hurt?” asked Kurt, searching for another cut or punch that had gone undetected. He didn't find any. Blaine calmed down enough to speak.

“My leg...my ankle. It hurts worse than when I broke it,” he said.

“Okay, I'm going to get your car...I'll be right back,” August said and Kurt handed him the keys.

“Tell Rachel and Finn what's happened and we'll be back there in a few minutes,” Kurt said, petting Blaine's shoulder. Cooper was trying to get him to let go of his leg so they could look at it, but in the cast there wasn't much they could do.

“It hurts...it hurts...” Blaine was chanting. “I think it's swelling up, maybe,” he said and Cooper went into the cabin and came out with a flashlight. Kurt looked down the cast and then handed the flashlight to Coop. He looked grim when he was done.

“I think we better get the helicopter,” he said.

It was less than fifteen minutes before August was back and they got Blaine into the back seat. Kurt was holding his head and Cooper his feet as they went back to the house. Rachel came out, looking worried.

“Rach, can you stay with the babies until we get back? I think something is wrong with Blaine's leg,” he said. Rachel nodded her head.

“They're already in bed, Finn is reading them a story. I have your satellite phone...Blaine, honey, go get fixed. We will take care of them like they were our own,” Rachel said and Kurt was relieved that she didn't sound panicked.

At the hospital, the emergency staff rushed around to get the things the doctor was calling for. During the flight, the cast had cracked and fluid had begun leaking from the crack. Kurt was in full panic and Blaine was thrashing in pain so badly that Cooper could hardly hold him still.

The doctor cut off the cast and Kurt could see how swollen is leg had gotten It didn't even look like a leg anymore.

“Kurt, I think he rebroke it. What was he doing this evening?”

“Ah, he was boxing and got tripped. When he got up, we had to carry him to a chair, but I thought he was just...I don't know? I guess I didn't think,” Kurt said, feeling guilty. Why hadn't he looked closer at the leg?

“I swept his feet from under him,” Cooper said, coming over when he heard the doctor's question.

“How hard did he fall? Where was his leg?”

“He fell pretty hard – it was on hard ground, not in a boxing ring or anything. His leg was under him,” Cooper said, hanging his head.

“Okay. We'll have to see what the X-rays say,” the doctor said grimly. He walked out of the cubicle and Kurt pulled Cooper down beside him into a chair. August was in the waiting room because they only allowed two people in the rooms with the patients.

The orderly wheeled Blaine back in, an IV dripping morphine into his arm. The doctor had asked detailed questions about how much whisky Blaine had consumed and did a blood-alcohol test before he'd administer the drug. They waited, Kurt and Cooper taking turns holding Blaine's hand and stroking his forehead.

“Okay, we are going to do surgery. The bone is broken. It had healed enough that the bone had made a sort of a lump on the bone, which is what happens when a broken bone heals. It broke just above the healed part,” the doctor told Kurt.

“When are you going to operate?”

“Now. The orthopedic surgeon is getting ready right now, I called him when I suspected it was rebroken. There is a complication. This might have let loose a blood clot, so we will be doing a scan to detect that here in a minute. We will put him under the anesthetic first so it won't be painful for him. Here, the nurse will take you to the waiting room...”

Cooper rushed to Blaine's side, holding his hand gently and giving him a kiss on the cheek.

“I love you, Squirt. I will be here when you wake up, I promise,” Coop said, then left so Kurt could be by his side. Cooper went to the waiting room with August to wait out the hours.

Kurt stood by his side, holding his hand and stroking his face. Blaine looked up, having heard what the doctor said. He closed his eyes.

“Tell Jordan and Katura that I love them...” he whispered.

“Tell them yourself!” Kurt snapped, knowing that the only reason Blaine said that was because he thought he wasn't going to make it through surgery. It made him upset – and fearful.

“Oh, Kurt...I love you, too,” Blaine said a bit louder, mistaking Kurt's angry retort for jealousy.

“No, that's isn't what is going on here. You are not going to die, mister. This is a broken leg, not heart surgery. I will be here when you wake up, my darling. I love you, too,” he finished, not able to maintain his anger at all.

“Mr. Hummel-Anderson,” the nurse said to Kurt, “you can go with us up to the operating room. Someone will take your brothers up to the waiting room on that floor. Go ahead, you can hold his hand while we walk,” the woman smiled at Kurt, who took Blaine's hand. Blaine smiled up at him, the morphine making him able to think now.

Kurt said goodbye when they came to get Blaine for the surgery. Kurt thought he looked so small in that bed with the too-big hospital gown and the puffy cap that covered his beautiful curls. He saw the cut on his forehead was beginning to leak once again, a small bit of blood trickling down towards his ear. Kurt took the corner of the sheet and dabbed it.

“We'll take care of that, too,” the woman assured Kurt, giving him a knowing look. Kurt smiled back at her, relieved that a kind person was in charge of getting Blaine to the operating room. He leaned over and took Blaine in his arms, kissing his cheek. Blaine moved so he could kiss Kurt's lips and held him tightly.

“I love you, baby. I will be fine, if you promise me you won't be angry anymore that I didn't tell you about the money. Deal?” Blaine bargained. He knew it wasn't fair, but it might work. Kurt frowned, then kissed him again.

“Okay, deal. I won't be angry, but you are going to answer all my questions. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“I love you...” Kurt said as Blaine let go of his hand and he was wheeled through the operating room doors.

Sitting in the waiting room with August and Kurt, it was mostly silent. Cooper was blaming himself for this. If he hadn't swept Blaine's legs, his little brother would be sitting on his porch playing dominoes or something. He had a lot to answer for. August did his best to make him feel better, but it wasn't working.

Kurt finally cleared his throat and nailed Cooper with his best bitch-glare. Coop was frozen, looking at his brother-in-law.

“Okay, Cooper. You are going to tell me every detail of this Mount Russell story. Every. Fucking. Detail.”

Cooper sat with his mouth open, unable to talk. Kurt shifted on his seat.

“You owe it to me. My husband is in there because of you. Now start talking,” Kurt demanded. Cooper shook his head and started.

“August told you how it went...with the grandfathers and with Sterling, my dad, and Brayden Warner. Well, I guess Sterling had done his father one better and began investing in the company itself, not just the land. Brayden had let him buy a share...it ended up to be 25%. When he died, Brayden felt so guilty, because of Lenore, that he gave us another 23%. So Blaine and I own 48% of Warner Lumber. Why else would he let Blaine use the helicopter to fly you around? Have you seen any other lumberjack on this mountain use it?” Cooper asked and Kurt shook his head. Why hadn't he figured this out? Businessmen usually don't just loan their helicopters to their employees. He looked up as Cooper started to say more, but but Cooper continued.

“So, we both own our land separately – the Warners and the Anderson's – but we own the actual company together. Blaine and I get a portion of the profits from the sale of the lumber now and the percent will go way up when we start harvesting Mount Russell. It's a big mountain, bigger than Mount Warner and about a third more trees. Warner will retire soon and Lenore has no interest in logging. I don't know how her husband feels about it – but Brayden made him sign a pre-nuptual agreement that limits what he can get if they get divorced,” Coop said. Looking to Kurt to see if he had anything to say about Puck.

“Noah is a good man, Cooper. I have known him from kindergarten and he won't hurt Lenore. He is so in love with her, and so excited about the baby. Don't worry about that. I don't know if he will be interested in logging. Maybe Brayden should ask him now, so he can have a chance to learn if he wants to?” Kurt suggested. He didn't mind talking about this, but he gave Cooper a look that said he better get back to the details of the money.

Cooper went on to tell him the details of who owned what and what happened if Mr. Warner should die. Kurt wasn't comfortable with thinking about running the whole company, and he knew that Blaine wasn't either.

“There's a third mountain.”

Kurt's head whipped around, making his neck hurt.

“What?”

“Mount Carr is just beyond Mount Russell. We co-own it, too,” Cooper said. “That is where a lot of the profits went for years, that's why Blaine and I grew up in a cabin with no electricity and water. All the profits went to buy that mountain,” Cooper said slowly, knowing Kurt would get even more upset – but he seemed to be taking it in his stride.

“Is that all? No copper mines in India? No gold mines in the Colorado mountains?” he said with all the sarcasm he could muster.

“No, Kurt. No more mountains, no mines, nothing else. Oh, we own a piece of the paper mill down in Coos Bay,” Cooper revealed. Kurt nodded. “And two freighters that operate between here and Japan.”

“How much money is Blaine getting every month? He's never put any of it in our account. Or did he?” Kurt looked puzzled again, thinking of the 'salary' that was deposited in the account on the first of each month. It was so much more than he thought an entry-level forester would get.

“I don't know exactly. He is paid by the company, but it has to do with profit margins and things. I know it was put into a trust fund since he was a baby, same as me. He could take some out for a major purchase – he bought his guitar one year and his designer boots. For the most part, he doesn't touch it. We just didn't need money when we lived in the cabin – the one Blaine owns. We were content to live on the mountain and work when we needed. I love being a lumberjack, and I'll do it until I can't any more,” Cooper said, giving August a look that resulted in him pulling Cooper closer to lean against him.

“Okay. Is any of it invested?” he asked.

“Mostly back into the company. There are crews to pay, equipment to maintain, so many things. The operating budget is huge.”

“I can imagine!” Kurt said, smiling at Cooper. He was angry and upset, but he loved Cooper and wanted him to stay close. He knew how much his husband loved Coop, too, and didn't want anything to happen between them. Enough damage had been done with everyone keeping secrets. He was glad that it had all opened up – even if it did cause some fighting for a while. He was reasonably sure things would be better when Blaine was back with them.

Cooper told Kurt what he could about the company and how it worked.

“I think that is why Blaine was taking you around to see how harvesting works. He wanted you to know what it was all about before he told you about his part in the company. He's just feeling his way along, hoping the men will accept him. Anyone else – someone that young telling those old hands what to do? Especially with Blaine introducing new ways of doing things – the crew would eat them for breakfast! But they know Blaine is also their boss, so they have to show him respect here. It's still hard on Blaine, but he's up to the challenge.”

Kurt closed his eyes. He had no idea Blaine was under this much stress. Had he been supportive enough? Had he been sensitive to what Blaine needed? He thought so, but who knew? Blaine never complained, so it was hard to tell. They had a lot to talk about when they were alone again.

It was late that night when Blaine opened his eyes. He'd opened them briefly in the recovery room and Kurt had stroked his cheek, but he'd fallen right back asleep.

“Kurt?” he called.

“I'm right here, baby. How are you feeling?”

“It hurts,” was all he said, clutching Kurt's hand. Kurt pushed the button on the morphine pump and Blaine closed his eyes.

Cooper and August walked in.

“Did he wake up yet?” Cooper asked. He'd promised he would be there when his little brother woke.

“Just for a moment. He was hurting so I pushed the pain pump. He went back to sleep,” Kurt whispered.

“I'm awake,” came a croak from Blaine's bed. He struggled to open his eyes.

“Squirt, how are you? I'm here, just like I promised,” said Cooper, coming closer to the bed and leaning close to his brother.

“Cooooop.”

“Yeah, Squirt?”

“Quit calling me 'Squirt'.”

August and Kurt laughed, so Cooper did, too. Blaine opened one eye and glared at Kurt, who put his hand on Blaine's shoulder.

“How did the surgery go?” Blaine asked.

“Fine. Your leg has a nice bar and screws in it. Two plates, actually. That should hold it together for a while they think. They also fixed your cut...it needed five stitches...but there is nothing they can do with your busted lip and black eye,” Kurt groused, frowning from Blaine to Cooper.

Cooper had the presence of mind to mumble he was sorry and look down to avoid Kurt's fiery glasz eyes.

Blaine smirked when Coop was getting it from Kurt. He'd been on the receiving end of Kurt's wrath before and did not want to be there again.

“Blaine, there was a blood clot. They found it before the surgery and were able to remove it before it moved into your blood stream and on to your brain. You are so lucky.” Cooper told his brother. His eyes got big and he stared, open mouthed at Cooper.

“It is fine now, I promise. The got it right away. It was from the break,” Kurt tried to clarify. Blaine nodded his head, still a bit woozy from the anesthetic and the morphine.

“How's he doing?” came a voice from the door.

“Burt?” Blaine said, looking to the door as Burt and Carole came in.

“Kurt called me, told me what happened. I waited until you were in your room so I could see you. How are you?” Burt asked, giving his son-in-law a big hug.

“Fine, sir,,,,I mean Burt. Damn, I will never get used to calling you by your first name,” Blaine chuckled.

“Then call me Dad?” Burt asked, not thinking about the fact that Blaine lost her own dad.

“I'd like that,” Blaine said and closed his eyes. He was so tired after everything.

“I think we need to let him sleep,” Kurt said, smiling at everyone. They all left and Kurt was alone with Blaine, sitting beside him and holding his hand. Blaine had a sweet smile on his face as he fell back asleep. Kurt knew the chair folded out into a bed – he's been here before.

“Good night, my sweet prince,” Kurt whispered, kissing Blaine's face one last time before he dozed off in the chair.