“Jonathan, Kurt’s been turned over to the Red Cross. He’s alive!”

Jonathan had just picked up the phone when he heard Jack’s excited voice yelling into the phone. His legs gave out and he slumped onto the couch.

“He is being transported to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center as we speak. I know we should have notified you through official channels but I knew you’d want to hear the news immediately,” said Jack. “There’s a military charter plane going out of New York in the morning. I’ve made arrangements for your entire family to be on that plane to Ramstein.”

“Can you authorize emergency leave for Airman Blaine Anderson, Kurt’s boyfriend, so that he can go with us? He is stationed at F.E. Warren AFB?”

“I’ll take care of it,” he promised.

“Thank you, Jack. I will notify Burt right now,” he hung up the phone and started yelling for Marissa. “Is Burt still at the shop?” he asked.

“Yes, I think so; he said something about getting breakfast at the diner near the shop with Carole since she didn’t have to be at work until 10:00am. Why?”

He grabbed her and started swinging her around, “Kurt’s alive! He’s headed to Landstuhl!” They were both crying and holding each other. The past month had been hell for both of them. “I’ll head over to the shop and you call the airlines and book flights for all of us to New York for tonight. There is a flight headed to Ramstein Air Base in Germany and Jack managed to get us all on it. It leaves in the morning so we need to be there tonight. Also, book a flight for Blaine from Cheyenne to New York. Kurt would kill us if we don’t bring him along.” He ran out the door to find Burt.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

“Burt! Burt!” Burt was working underneath a car and was startled when he heard Jonathan screaming. He managed to bump his head before he rolled himself out from underneath the car. He saw his father-in-law running towards him with red-rimmed eyes and all disheveled looking. Burt almost had a heart attack. All he could think of was that they had found Kurt’s body like all the other POWs. He couldn’t speak. He just stared at Jonathan trying to get enough breath into his body to breathe.

As soon as Jonathan saw him he yelled, “Kurt’s alive!” Burt couldn’t process anything else. He put his hands over his face and started to cry. “My boy’s alive! THAT’S MY BOY! I knew he could do it!” He grabbed his cell phone and called Carole who immediately got someone to cover her shift so she could come home.

“I’ve got to call Blaine!”

“Tell Blaine to be packed and ready to go to New York tonight. We are all going to fly out to Germany first think in the morning. Marissa will call him with his flight information.”

Burt called Blaine and theirs was a short, emotional conversation, “Are you sure I’ll be able to go?” asked Blaine. “I tried to get emergency leave right after Kurt was captured and it was denied.”

“Jonathan said it was all taken care of but let me know if they give you a hard time and I will have Jack call.”

As soon as Blaine hung up the phone he ran into his boss’ office. “Airman Anderson, I was just about to go find you. It seems you have just received 30 days of emergency leave starting tomorrow. These came straight from the Pentagon so you are released from duty immediately. I hope it is good news.” Blaine had informed his supervisor about Kurt’s situation.

“Yes sir. It is. Kurt is alive and being flown to Landstuhl. I’m flying out tonight along with his family.”

“I won’t keep you then. Good luck – I hope everything turns out well. I will see you in 30 days, Airman Anderson.”

“Thank you, sir.” Blaine rushed home and quickly packed his bags so that he would be ready to go to the airport as soon as he heard from Kurt’s grandmother.

xoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxox

Kurt had arrived at Landstuhl and after being evaluated by the medical team assigned to him he was debriefed. Just like Smith, Kurt had to recount his story quite a few times to different people before he was allowed to talk to anyone. He made sure he documented every detail about Sahid Awad that he could think of but no one was able to identify the man. They ran the name through every known database but the alias was clean. Kurt was just grateful he had been given his freedom. As soon as he could he called his father to let him know he was okay. His father mentioned that they were all flying out to Germany as soon as possible. His conversation with Blaine was an emotional one. Neither one could talk coherently. Their emotions were all over the place. Blaine promised to be there as soon as he could and Kurt had to finally hang up when the doctors walked into his room. Kurt didn’t want to go into surgery until his family arrived in Germany but the doctors were worried about some of the internal injuries he had incurred due to the beating so they rushed him into surgery as soon as an operating room was available.

He had been given anesthesia and he was out cold. His arms and legs had to be re-broken and he needed pins surgically implanted to help stabilize his bones but he wasn’t worried especially when he sensed his mother’s gentle touch.

He felt his mother smoothing his bangs out of his face, “Honey, you will be okay. Your dad and Blaine are on their way here.”

“Thanks mom. I can’t wait to see dad and everyone else – especially Blaine. I’ve decided that I am not willing to be away from him any longer than necessary.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m going to marry his as soon as I can – this way we can put in for a joint spouse assignment. I want to go to bed every night with him by my side and I want to wake up every morning with him cuddled up right next to me. I told myself that if I got out alive the first thing I would do is marry him.”

“He loves you so much Kurt. You are lucky to have him and I hope you get to grow old together…,” Kurt could hear the way his mother’s voice faded out – almost as if she was too sad to continue talking to him about long lasting love. He wished things had been different but he did know that his father was happy with Carole. “Bye mom, thanks for watching over me,” he mumbled as he drifted off to sleep.

After his surgery Kurt was kept in a medically induced coma for a few days. The surgeons had to repair quite a few internal injuries as well as getting his limbs set correctly. The doctors wanted him immobile so that he would start the healing process without any problems and to keep the pain at bay. His family had been by his side for the past two days anxiously waiting for him to wake up. Eventually their prayers were answered. The doctors had decided to bring him out of the coma in a few hours if his vitals were still stable.

Burt had spoken to the doctors and they had arranged for everyone to be present when they brought Kurt out of his coma. Blaine held his breath as he saw Kurt’s eyelids flutter. He gently stroked his hand and waited impatiently. He blinked for a moment and when he focused on Kurt he was looking into those beautiful blue eyes he had thought he would never see again.

Kurt smiled at him as he licked his lips and muttered, “Hi – will you marry me?”

“What?” Blaine wasn’t sure if he had heard correctly. Kurt’s voice was hoarse and scratchy – probably as a result of the breathing tube.

Kurt swallowed and cleared his throat. Burt grabbed his glass of water and let him have a sip of water. “Blaine, will you marry me?” he asked one more time.

“Yes,” this time Blaine didn’t even hesitate he leaned over and gently kissed Kurt. Everyone started talking at once and Kurt laid back and let his family fawn over him. He was able to convince Blaine to go to the hotel and to take a shower and a short nap while he visited with this dad. Blaine didn’t want to go but he couldn’t refuse Kurt especially since Kurt could tell how tired Blaine really was besides Blaine knew Kurt needed to reassure his father.

“Talk to me Kurt. Tell me what happened,” Burt waited patiently while Kurt took his time telling him everything he had gone through. Jonathan was listening to the story as well and when Kurt asked him about Sahid he looked surprised. “I do remember him but that was so long ago and I haven’t thought about it in a long time.”

“Well you certainly made an impact on him. He knows everything about you right down to your FICO score. He pretty much stalks you and I am not surprised that he found out I was your grandson.”

“We tried to keep that fact away from the media. We figured that if the media got a whiff of the connection then it would effectively sign your death warrant. I am not well liked in certain Arabic circles.”

“Well in this case, it actually saved not only my life but my friends as well,” replied Kurt. “I was sure I was a dead man. I know I could not have survived another beating. I could see Smith slowly dying in front of me and I knew we were both running out of time.” All three men sat there in silence each one thinking about how lucky they had been this time around.

“I dreamed about mom and even Mr. Schue while I was out of my mind in pain. Mom would sing to me like she used to when I was little and while Mr. Schue meant well he tended to always say the wrong thing. I think they were looking out for me.”

“I’m sure they were. Kurt, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure dad.”

“Why did you ask Blaine to marry you? I know you love him but that was intense. I mean you just woke up from a coma and you immediately popped the question.”

“I had plenty of time to think while I was in that cell just waiting to die. I knew that if I had died over there my one regret would have been that I had never married Blaine. I promised myself – and mom – that I would marry Blaine as soon as possible. I guess I must have been dreaming about it because as soon as I opened my eyes there he was – as beautiful as ever. I couldn’t help myself. I know we are young but I know that he is the one for me, dad. Are you okay with it?”

“Son, I’m okay with anything you want as long as you are happy, safe and alive. I know Blaine loves you but have you thought about how difficult being apart from each other will be on your relationship,” asked Burt.

“Yeah, Blaine mentioned he has 30 days leave which we can spend at home. I want to get married as soon as possible dad. I seriously thought I was a dead man. I hoped but never really believed that I would ever see any of you again and now that I have been given another chance at life I am not about to waste a single moment.” Kurt looked at his grandfather and said, “Grandpa, can you do me a favor?” His grandfather nodded as Kurt explained exactly what he wanted him to do.

“No problem kid, your grandmother and I will head out and be back in a few hours.”

Burt continued talking to Kurt until he noticed that his son was falling asleep. He watched him sleep for a while and realized how truly amazing his son was. He looked inside his wallet for a picture of Kurt and his mother that he carried with him. “We did good Elizabeth, he told me you were watching over him. Thank you for being there for us.”

xoxoxoxxoxoxoxox

Kurt woke up when he heard laughter and quiet voices talking. He opened his eyes and saw his family gathered. His grandfather sat on the bed and bent down to whisper into his ear, “I put what you asked for under your pillow. Your grandmother picked them out so I hope they meet with your approval. If not we can always take them back.”

“I’m sure they are beautiful grandpa – thanks.”

After a few minutes Jonathan winked at Kurt and cleared his throat, “Okay everyone, let’s leave these two lovebirds alone for a few minutes and head over to the local Gasthaus for some jagerschnitzel and beer.” He quickly ushered everyone out the door.

“Well that was subtle,” laughed Kurt.

Blaine climbed on the bed and cuddled up next to Kurt, “I’ve been wanting to do this all day long. I thought I would never get to hold you in my arms again. I don’t want to ever let go.”

“You won’t have to. I know I asked you to marry me earlier and you already said yes but can you reach under my pillow for me and grab the small box under there. I can’t seem to do anything for myself quite yet,” Kurt gestured at his hands and legs encased in casts.

Blaine reached under the pillow and pulled out a small jewelry box. “Open it,” said Kurt. He opened it and saw matching platinum bands. Each one had a small diamond in the middle. “Do you like them?” he asked nervously.

Blaine couldn’t speak so he just nodded as he reverently ran his fingers over the bands. “If I could, I would slip that band onto your finger but you will have to do that for me as well.” Blaine took out one of the bands and slid it onto his ring finger. He tried to put Kurt’s band on but his finger was still too swollen so he set it back in the case.

“I want to get married as soon as we get back to the states,” muttered Kurt as Blaine’s lips took possession of his.

“Yes, yes, yes.”

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxo

The last three weeks had been a whirlwind of activity. Kurt had finally been released from Landstuhl and had been sent to Lima to recuperate. He had been put on medical leave until he was cleared for duty. Blaine was leaving for Wyoming in a couple of days but at the moment was nervously waiting at the altar for his fianc�e.

Kurt had planned the perfect wedding even though everything had been done at a rapid pace. He was still in a wheelchair since his arms and legs were still is casts but he didn’t care as long as he was getting married to Blaine. Instead of having his dad accompany him down the aisle, Burt was wheeling him down the aisle. He didn’t notice his family or friends in attendance – he had eyes only for Blaine.

Blaine’s parents hosted the wedding reception which was truly a life-affirming affair. Kurt and Blaine had both invited their friends from Wyoming and Florida as well as their high school friends. Corporal Smith was in attendance with his family. He was also still in a wheelchair recuperating from his injuries and Kurt was finally able to meet his daughter.

“Thank you for saving my father,” she said shyly as she hugged Kurt.

“Your father saved me as well,” he replied. He made her giggle when he asked her to dance with his husband since he couldn’t move his feet and everyone deserved to dance at their wedding. She hurriedly led Blaine to the dance floor.

“She is truly a beauty,” commented Kurt looking at his friend.

“Hummel, I can’t thank you enough…” Kurt interrupted Smith “You don’t need to thank me. You deserved your freedom and I would make the same decision again in a heartbeat. Seeing her smile is worth everything I did. I want to thank you for keeping your promise and delivering my message to my family. I know that must have been hard for you but I wanted them to know I thought about them every moment and how they meant to me in case I didn’t make it out alive.”

“Yeah those were some pretty tough phone calls to make. I thought they would hate me for taking your chance at freedom but a promise was made and had to be kept.”

“My family doesn’t hate you - now enough of tears. This is my wedding day and it is a happy occasion. Let’s celebrate!”

xoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxo

Blaine’s leave was up. He had to be back at his duty station on Monday morning. There had been no honeymoon since the wedding had been on Friday and there was just not enough time and besides, according to Kurt it is hard to be romantic when you are encased in plaster. He had accidentally punched Blaine when he had a nightmare and woke up swinging at his attackers. Blaine had sported a bruise the size of a baseball on his shoulder for a few weeks.

Since Kurt was on medical leave for a few more months they had decided to return to Wyoming together. Kurt refused to be apart from his husband. His grandparents offered to take them in their RV and set them up in an apartment off base since they were not authorized base housing. They all piled into the RV on Saturday morning and made the 19 hour drive straight through taking turns driving. His grandparents noticed how much help Kurt needed and managed to talk the boys into renting a small 2 bedroom house right outside the base. They decided to stay with them to take care of Kurt while Blaine was at work. It wasn’t the best way to start their life together but they were grateful to the couple for giving up their carefree life to take care of their grandchild.

The day they had all been dreading finally arrived. Kurt had his casts removed and had been cleared for light duty. He was to report to his duty station within the week. As soon as they had been married they had requested a joint spouse assignment but had heard nothing from personnel. Kurt was to be awarded the Silver Star for his “gallantry in action” and the award ceremony was to be held the week after he reported back to duty. Jonathan and Marissa had left as soon as Kurt’s casts had been removed. They were headed to Florida to visit friends and to be on hand when Kurt received his medal.

Blaine had asked for two weeks off so that he could get Kurt back to Florida and be present at the ceremony. His supervisors had been understanding and graciously granted him his leave. They flew down to Florida and managed to get Kurt settled into a dorm room. Since Kurt was on light duty he was able to spend quite a bit of time with Blaine.

Kurt received his Silver Star surrounded by his husband and his family. They celebrated by having lunch at a restaurant overseeing the Gulf of Mexico. Burt offered a toast and then Jonathan followed with a surprise. “I have a surprise for the newlyweds,” Kurt and Blaine looked at Jonathan. “I know you boys put in for a joint spouse assignment so I called in a few favors and when I mentioned your name I was informed that those orders had already been approved and were being cut. I didn’t even have to call in a favor at all. It seems that Silver Star POW’s deserve to be stationed with their spouse. Blaine it seems that you now have orders to Hurlburt Field.”

“Hurlburt Field?” asked Blaine.

“It is about 25 minutes away from Eglin,” shouted Kurt as he grabbed his husband and twirled him around. Everyone started clapping and watched the two boys laughing and kissing each other.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxox

“I’m exhausted.”

“I think that is everything though,” said Kurt as he surveyed the living room. They had found an apartment in Fort Walton Beach which was located between the two bases. They had just finished moving in and were tired and had just plopped down on the living room couch.

“I’m glad we are finally able to start our life together. Kurt, you are the love of my life and I don’t ever want to think about being separated from you ever again. I decided that when my enlistment comes up I am getting out. I know you love the military life but I am content with being your dependent and following you around.”

“What will you do if you get out? I don’t want you making this decision and then regretting it,” Kurt worried his lip as he waited for Blaine to answer.

“I decided I will go back to school using my GI Bill. I’m not exactly sure what I want to major in but I have plenty of time before I would have to declare a major. I have enjoyed my time in the military but I don’t love it like you do so I will be fine getting out and going back to being a civilian.”

“I do love the military and plan on making it a career like my grandfather. I’ve been planning on going back to school as well and maybe trying to get a commission.”

“You would definitely make an awesome officer. I am so proud of you – now come here and kiss me and let’s go christen our new bedroom.”

The End.