Blaine thinks he had been walking for another few days, though he wasn't sure exactly. The time just seemed to be slipping by him. It was nearing dawn and he was thinking about stopping for a little while to eat a meal when he saw the light glinting off something in the distance. Intrigued by finally seeing something that wasn't trees or rocks, Blaine immediately began to walk towards it. As he got closer, he saw that what had caught his eye was actually a sign.

 It read ‘Lima, Ohio'.

 Blaine had to take a couple of glances at it before he realized what those words meant. He had reached a city. There might be real, genuine, people!

 But his hopes were crushed as soon as he saw the smaller, cardboard sign next to the first one that read ‘DO NOT ENTER: INFECTION'. So it had reached this town, too. Blaine wasn't really all that surprised; if he was to go by what Cooper had told him, most of the earth would be infected at this point. He still found that thought hard to believe.

 He decided to take a chance and explore the city a bit. It looked mostly deserted, with only a few cars and bicycles scattered around the seats. There weren't any people in sight, but Blaine was hoping desperately that he could find a companion. Even if they were just to talk for a little while before parting ways again. Blaine hadn't heard his own voice (or anyone else's, for that matter) in a number of days, and it was beginning to make him go a bit crazy with loneliness.

 Maybe I could restock some of my supplies here? Blaine was running low on certain items, such as water and matches. If he could find some while he was here, it would be great.

 A quick look around him told Blaine that none of these buildings were stores; just houses and apartments. The only business Blaine could see was a dusty looking shop that was named ‘Hummel Tires and Lube', and he highly doubted he would find and groceries in there.

 But you might find other things that you could use as weapons. Another, wilder, part of Blaine's brain reminded him. It scared him sometimes how his stream of thought had changed since he was forced into this situation. It was like he was in some sort of survival mode all the time, and his most of his thoughts consisted of how he was going to stay alive. And sometimes those thoughts were violent. On more than one occasion Blaine had thought up different methods of killing the infected if they attacked, and he was always left guilty and disgusted with himself afterwards.

 But sometimes being prepared and having a few spare weapons is a good thing. Blaine walked through the open door to the garage, looking around to see if he could find a crowbar of some sort.

 Then something caught his eye. A trail of large, recently painted red arrows were laid out in a path that went across the garage floor and under a different door. Once again, Blaine's curiosity got the best of him and he decided to follow the trail. It had to be there for a reason, right? No one would come back to a deserted town just to paint arrows on the floor. They had to have been put there within the last few hours, Blaine guessed, because the bright red liquid was still wet to the touch. Strange.

 Pushing back the door, Blaine expected to see something surprising. But the room he entered was just as bland as the one before. It's only contents consisted of an old desk and a worn, moth-eaten armchair.

 He walked over the desk and saw that on top of it lay a single piece of paper. Blaine picked it up and unfolded it, knowing by the first few words that this was what was meant to be found at the end of the trail. Blaine began to read.

 Dear Dad (or whoever else might be reading this letter),

 If you found this then you must have followed my trail! I tried to make it something discreet that would only be noticed by humans...

 I really hope you are still here to read this. I'm trying to stay alive, but it's difficult, and I'm not going to lie, it's pretty damn terrifying. Oh, and gross. I've been wearing the same shirt for days now. But that's beside the point.

 Rachel and I took a plane back here the day we found out about the infection, and she's been studying it ever since. She concluded that these beings were more mindless, and weren't as perceptive as humans are. For example, they wouldn't have noticed my arrows. And either they can't read or just don't care to read, but they aren't going to get this letter.

 We're going to be heading towards New York again, and then towards the ocean. We don't know where we are going to end up from there, but at least we have a start. I brought the car, and I suggest that if you're going to follow us that you bring one too.

 I'm going to be parking my car outside of OSU in Columbus, and sleeping inside the building. I'll stay here for a week to wait for you, and if you don't show up then I guess I'll know you're gone.

 I'll be waiting for you, dad. Always. I love you.

 -Kurt

 Blaine started blankly at the letter for a few moments, letting his brain soak up the words. There was another human boy, and he was close by! Blaine checked the date on the letter. May 25th, 2014. Was that today? It must have been, the wet paint had shown that this Kurt had been here just hours before!

 Blaine found himself wanted to jump for joy. He could meet up with another person.

 Part of his brain told him to slow down, you're going to fast. He doesn't know if this boy is safe to trust or still alive even. Was this letter just a fake made to draw humans in to the enemy? Was Kurt even real? There were so many things that should have seemed bad or suspicious about this situation, but when Blaine read over the words all he could see was a genuine person, one just like him, who had been thrown out into this world to survive. He knew it was risky, but he knew that he had to trust this boy's words.

 He read over the letter again. Kurt was going to Columbus, with some Rachel person. Maybe his girlfriend. I could go to Columbus, Blaine thought. He would be going back to where he came from, but he would be meeting up with more people, and maybe getting a start towards the ocean was a good idea anyway.

 I brought the car, and I suggest that if you're going to follow us that you bring one too.

 Blaine didn't even have a car, but he knew that Kurt was giving good advice. If he walked back, chances are he wouldn't make it in a week and Kurt would be long gone by the time he reached it. He was going to have to steal someone's car.

 It was something Blaine would have never dreamed of just a month ago. He tried to convince himself that no, it isn't actually stealing if no one owns it. No one's going to care anyway.

 He walked back out to the garage area and looked around for a set of car keys. There were a few lying around, as well as a few cars, but he had no idea which belonged to which.

 Blaine picked up all the keys, brought them over to the sturdiest looking car, and began to try opening the car with each. Eventually, he found one that worked. He hopped in the car and turned on the engine, driving the vehicle a few feet forwards and deciding that it was good enough to drive. He got back out to pack up all of his supplies and through them in the back seat, before quickly turning back to the tool wall, grabbing a crowbar, and throwing that in also.

 He looked around the garage for containers of gasoline, and was pleased to find a bunch over in the far corner. He stuffed them into the trunk. He was going to need to refuel at some point during his drive.

 Blaine spent the next half hour going in and out of houses on the same street, collecting as much bottles and jugs of water as he could. He wasn't sure when he was going to find another fresh water source, so he figured it was best to be prepared.

 When Blaine thought that he had enough to keep him going for a while, he got back into the driver's seat of the car, and began heading towards Columbus.

 Driving had proved to be a lot quicker (and way less exhausting) than walking had been. It had only taken about two hours of non-stop driving to reach Columbus, whereas it had taken Blaine days on foot. He had never been more thankful for a car than he was in that moment, as the rainclouds started to form over his head and the faint rumble of thunder was heard.

 Blaine had left the actual letter back at the tire shop, in case the boy's dad showed up to read it. But he had written down an extra copy that he could reference if he needed to. He looked down at the hastily scribbled words for reassurance, and continued driving in the direction of the Ohio State University.

 When Blaine pulled up outside the building, there was only one other vehicle there. That must belong to Kurt, Blaine thought as he admired the Navigator.

 Oh my god, I'm about to see actual people. Am I ready for this?

 Blaine spent a good five minutes staying in his car, taking deep breaths and trying not to freak out, before he brought himself around to open the door and get out.

 He could almost hear Cooper's voice inside his head, repeating yet again the words that had been uttered to him so many times. Courage, Blaine. You can do this.

 He walked up to the door, took a deep breath and turned the handle, taking a tentative step inside.

 What he didn't expect was to be pushed up against the wall with a dagger against his throat, and two wild, blue eyes glaring down into his.