Chapter 26

Alex's summer house was incredible. Even though it was in this little town, it still was tucked away, a bit into the woods so when you passed the road that went to the house, you couldn't really see it.

The house wasn't big but the space around it was incredible. It felt like he could just sit on the patio and watch the nature all day.

When they entered the home is silence, Kurt instantly felt like he would like it here. It was a lot different from his usual style and the way he would decorate a home but change was good. It was nice to step out of the box once in a while.

It looked so warm and welcoming, with walls and floor made of wood. Very simple, basic furniture, that suited the place very well. It made it even more lovely.

There was a rock fireplace in the living room, the color scheme green and grey. Kurt knew right then that he would enjoy his time here, however long it would be.

‘'So,'' Alex placed his hands on his hips when he joined Kurt in the living room, after just bringing in all of Kurt's bags. ‘'Seems like my sister isn't here yet.''

Oh yeah. It turned out his sister was living here too.  He warned Kurt that she wasn't afraid to say what she wanted but was very friendly overall.

‘'Just so you know, there's just two bedrooms,'' Alex continued. ‘'So I'm going to sleep on the couch. It's a pull-out bed. I'll give you the other room.''

‘'Oh, no, no,'' Kurt argued. ‘'You should take it. I'm an intruder here, it's-‘'

‘'Don't worry, just take the room,'' Alex said calmly to him, giving Kurt the ‘don't rebel against me' look. ‘'I've slept on that couch more that in that room anyway.''

Kurt still thought about arguing but didn't when he saw the true look in Alex's eyes. He would have to watch how he would feel. This was his home after all, and he still would be working on his photography stuff and not sleeping well wouldn't be good for early mornings.

After Kurt settled in, Alex offered a walk through the forest and Kurt gladly accepted.

Kurt loved it here. The first few minutes had passed in silence because Kurt just had to take it all in. As much as he liked living in the big city, being in a place that was so close to nature was refreshing. The air was so much different, relaxing in a way, it felt so clean with every breath he took. ‘'Tell me about your sister,'' Kurt suggested.

‘'You'll meet her yourself,'' Alex teased. ‘'But what I could tell you are stories that she will never tell you...''

‘'Are you saying you're going to tell me some embarrassing stories about your sister behind her back?'' Kurt asked with narrowed eyes but he was grinning.

‘'Oh yes,'' Alex said clearly. He would enjoy this so much. His sister was older so she had plenty of time in her life to make fun of him, so why couldn't he?

‘'Ok, so this one time,'' Alex started and already seeing Kurt smile was making his heart flutter, ‘'she was like sixteen and she had to go with friends somewhere. She had these jeans that she had to iron and I guess she was too lazy to do that so she just took a vacuum cleaner, placed the pants on the ground and ran them over. That's when I walked in on her. Obviously, it didn't work and she ended up wearing a dress.

Kurt chucked and shook his head, waiting for more.

By the end of the stories, Kurt couldn't even walk from all the laughing, his belly was hurting so much but he couldn't stop.

‘'The boyfriend she is with even now, they went to visit her mother in Mexico so obviously they had to fly by plane and her boyfriend did a prank on her. They had some stuff to get to her mother so on the way back they had an empty suitcase. Her boyfriend filled it up with condoms and a spoon,'' a new set of laughter came out of Kurt, his hands clutching at his stomach, making Alex giggle a bit as he continued. ‘'He placed the spoon there so they would get caught on the plane. I wasn't really there but as far as I know, he wasn't getting any for some time after that.''

‘'Oh my god,'' Kurt tried to calm his laughter, tears almost spilling from his eyes. ‘'You have a crazy family.''

‘'I guess I do,'' he smirked.

Comfortable silence stretched between the both. Alex took a step a little closer and brushed away a tear from Kurt's cheek. Kurt's expression changed immediately. He didn't want anything like that happen. He didn't want Alex to love him. Or even like him that way. He had to admit, they had a great connection but it was platonic. Alex felt like a brother to Kurt.

Before Kurt could object, rain suddenly poured down with no warning. Kurt jumped a bit and Alex laughed. ‘'It happens sometimes here. Random rainstorms.''

The sand path quickly turned into puddles of mud, both boys slipping time to time. They didn't bother to get home quickly. They'd taken a long walk and they were several minutes away from the house. Even sprinting couldn't save them from being drenched now.

So they walked slowly, embracing the moment, the cool water on their skins.

Kurt had placed his hands in his pockets and nonchalantly kicked the dirt. He didn't intend to do what he did.

He hadn't noticed there was a little pile of mud on his shoe and by kicking it, the mud flew and hit Alex's, who was wearing shorts, bare calf.

Alex stopped walking from in front of Kurt and clenched his hands into fists. ‘'Don't tell me you just...''

When he slowly turned his head, he saw Kurt clutching both of his hands over his mouth as if he feels guilty. But Alex knew otherwise. His cheeks were giving off that he was smiling.

Before Kurt could react, Alex quickly grabbed mud in his hands and threw at Kurt, it hitting him in the thigh.

Kurt screamed from surprised and looked down at his dirty pants, the rain draining the mud all over down his leg.

He looked back at Alex, who looked proud, and narrowed his eyes. ‘'If you want to play dirty...''

He took some mud in his own hand and surged forward. Alex tried to get away but his reaction had been too slow and Kurt smeared the mud all over his cheek, neck and a little on his shoulder.

‘'You're so making me some tea for this Kurt.''

x-x-x-x-x

Blaine got home from Nick's place early in the morning. It was still too early for anyone to be up so he tried to be quiet.

He went to the living room and plopped down on the couch, plugging in his phone to charge it. He hadn't realized it had run out of batteries yesterday so the whole day he just thought no one needed him. And now that he thought about it, it was impossible. Heidi called him every day, asking where he was.

Not that he really knew what she wanted from his nowadays because he just didn't answe anymore.

He rather spent the whole day with Nick, watching sports games and movies instead of dealing with anyone from his family.

He left the phone on the arm of the couch and went to wash his teeth. When he got back, he unlocked his phone that was now turned on. He rolled his eyes at the several missed calls and texts from Heidi. He just swiped those away. He saw a message from Tina. It said ‘'Are you okay?''

Blaine's brow furrowed in confusion. Why would he not be okay Well, besides the whole Heidi and baby situation, everything was the same old.

And then he saw it.

A voicemail from Kurt.

He'd reached out to Kurt so many times he'd lost count. At first, he'd wanted to make everything right between them but realized that couldn't really happen. And by now, spending time in any way with Kurt would be enough. He hadn't seen him in so long.

Always when he went to his place he wouldn't be home, he would come visit his sister when he was out, hanging out with Jeff and Nick separately...

His thumb trembled, hovering above the voicemail for a moment. He took a deep breath. And then he clicked it.

‘'Hi Blaine. It's Kurt. I'm giving you a quick call to tell you that I'll be out of the city for...a while. I don't know how long,'' Kurt said in the voicemail and then it went silent. Blaine's felt horror creep up on him, suddenly feeling sick. He heard Kurt laugh after a long silence and he couldn't stop the little half-smile that rose on his lips. He hadn't heard that laugh for so long.

 ‘'Yeah , that's about it. I just wanted to tell you myself. I know Rachel would've told you but...I thought it would be better to hear from me. So, yeah. Have a nice day!''

Have a nice day?

How could he have a nice day after that?

Where had he left? For how long exactly? With whom?

Blaine's jaw clenched. So many emotions were going through him. Sadness, anger, confusion, curiosity, so many more that he felt like he could burst.

He dialed Kurt's number but it went straight to voicemail. And then again. And again.

He got up, grabbed his car keys and headed out.

x-x-x-x-x

It had gotten dark while Kurt and Alex were rolling around in mud. Literally.

They called it quits, though Kurt managed to stuff Alex's pockets with a fist of mud unnoticed.

They came home, saw that Alex's sister still wasn't home. Alex had warned her about Kurt coming here and she had nothing against it, she probably just wanted his to settle in and give him some space, which he was thankful for.

They took very long showers, Kurt first, then Alex.

Alex was making them thin pancakes while Kurt was flipping through a album of some of Alex's photos.

They were incredibly beautiful. And what a variety. From animals, to nature, to architecture.

To couples and to weddings.

It made Kurt a little sad but he shrugged it off quickly.

‘'These one's are beautiful,'' Kurt stated. There were many pictures of one wedding. Some events had three pictures most but this wedding had several pages to it. ‘'They're my favorite.''

Alex turned around to look at what Kurt was referring to and smiled. ‘'Yeah . Those are my favorite too. There's a really nice backstory.''

‘'Do tell.''

Alex smiled at the wonderful memory. ‘'I don't know why but I was so drawn to that couple. They had this amazing atmosphere. So full of love. It really felt like they were soul mates. I remember it was one of my first photo shoots and they didn't have much to give us. You know, for the pictures and everything. But we didn't care. Back then, my sister was working with me and we decided to go home a little before the celebration had ended and we developed all the pictures. All of them,'' he looked somewhere in the distance dreamily, Kurt noticed. ‘'We came back to the celebration and gave a whole album of already finished wedding photos. They were so happy. It was great doing something nice to strangers, you know. I've always cherished that memory.''

Kurt smiled all through the story. He envied Alex a bit. He had truly found his dream job. His deepest passion was his career and Kurt could only hope for the same himself.

x-x-x-x-x

Blaine didn't bother knocking or calling or warning or anything. He just stormed into Kurt's apartment. He was glad the door was open.

He immediately went to Kurt's room, seeing it empty. He turned around just as Tina came in with a shocked, confused face. She was about to say something but Blaine cut her off.

‘'Where the fuck is Kurt?''

‘'Blaine, please, calm down-‘'

‘'How can I calm down Just answer me!'' he demanded.

‘'Woah, woah!'' Mike came in the room and stood in front of his girlfriend. He knew what Blaine was throwing a fit about but he still didn't want him to yell at his girl. ‘'Calm down, tiger!''

‘'Just answer me, please,'' Blaine asked again, more quiet but demanding just like previously. ‘'Where the hell is he? Why isn't he answering me? How long will he be gone?''

‘'Blaine, sit down and shut your mouth or else I won't tell you a thing,'' Tina said very, very loudly, surprising Blaine and even Mike.

Blaine's eyes were wide but he slowly sat down, his mind racing and aching.

‘'Now, no one knows where he went off to,'' Tina explained and Blaine's looked at her very confused. How could that even be possible He couldn't just disappear. ‘'You may not like this but he went with Alexandreus.''

Blaine felt his stomach drop. That stupid greek photographer...

He got up from the bed, his whole body felt like it was on fire, he didn't know where to put himself, he stormed forward but he felt strong hands on his shoulders and he was pushed back slightly by Mike, to stop him from leaving.

‘'Blaine, I know how you may feel but you don't really have the right, honestly,'' Tina said. ‘'I'm sorry to say this but Kurt did the right thing. You can't imagine how much he suffered these months. I know, I was here.''

‘'So, he's with that guy now, that's what you're saying?'' Blaine asked, feeling miserable.

‘'No! No, Blaine!'' Tina almost shouted. ‘'Kurt tells me everything and if something like that... just no. Trust him, Blaine. He just needs some time to cool off and relax. Get away from the stress.''

‘'I understand that but not with him,'' Blaine still complained again. His day was just getting worse and worse. ‘'I just need to talk to him.''

‘'I'm afraid you can't,'' Mike said and Tina continued. ‘'He left his phone home.''

She pointed to device on the nightstand and Blaine's hands twisted in his hair in frustration. What is he going to do now?

‘'It means that no one will be able to reach him. Not even his grandmother.''

Blaine's head snapped up. Grandmother?

‘'When ...when did he find his grandmother'' Blaine asked and Tina looked like he had grown a second head.

‘'You didn't know?'' Mike asked, just as shocked as Tina.

‘'I though you would find out from Nick or Jeff. Or your sister even.''

‘'So everyone knows except me?'' Blaine couldn't believe this. Yes, he had told all of his friends to not talk about Kurt but this was huge news, why wouldn't they tell him this?

‘'Lydia is Kurt's grandmother,'' Tina explained further. ‘'He found out the day Heidi told you about the pregnancy.''

Lydia? Lydia was Kurt's grandmother?

The wheels in Blaine's head were spinning. She lived just a few apartments away.

Before Tina or Mike could stop him, he had stormed out of the apartment.

x-x-x-x-x

Blaine arrived home absolutely destroyed. He felt numb. Like his heart had been ripped out.

He found out absolutely nothing from Lydia. And he wasn't even surprised.

She was Kurt's relative. Of course she was very protective of Kurt and all the pain he'd been going through because of him had made the lady very angry at him.

She only angered him more, telling how nice the Alex boy was.

Blaine knew she meant well. But still it hurt like hell, knowing Kurt's only relative didn't want him to be near Kurt.

Though, she really didn't seem to know any of the answers herself. Not the place he was, not when he was heading back.

So now Blaine was exhausted and felt worse than ever.

And what he saw at home didn't make him feel any better.

Elizabeth and Heidi were sitting at the kitchen counter, flipping through wedding magazines.

Blaine felt sick to his stomach.

‘'Hey, honey, how was-‘' Elizabeth stopped when he saw her step-son's face. ‘'Are you alright, Blaine''

Blaine didn't answer, just left.

He spent the whole night drinking at some bar.

x-x-x-x-x

Kurt woke up first. He felt good. He had an amazing night's sleep. Probably, because of the fresh air and exhausting activities from yesterday.

He sneaked from his room to the living room, finding Alex sleeping, so he sneaked to the kitchen, preparing two coffees.

He heard Alex's alarm going off minutes after and soon he joined him in the kitchen, mumbling a ‘good morning'.

‘'Wow, you're good at waking up,'' Kurt teased and Alex laughed. ‘'You didn't postpone the alarm once.''

‘'What can I say, practice makes perfect,'' Alex teased back and sipped from his coffee. ‘'Got some work to do at my studio.''

Alex's sister still wasn't back from wherever she was and Kurt didn't want to be left home alone in boredom. ‘'Can I come with you? I want to see how you work your magic.''

Alex smiled and nodded. ''For sure. It won't be too long because I have just one appointment so why not.''

Kurt was in awe. Alex's studio was mesmerizing. It was simple, just like his loft back in LA but something about it screamed ‘Alex the artist'.

There were several tables and shelves, full of books and folders. The floor was covered with white wood, the walls dark grey and one wall full of graffiti. The other walls weren't blank. They were full of photos from the bottom to the top.

All the equipment Kurt couldn't name, the make-up table, everything was new and exciting for him.

Soon after they had gotten there, the client came and they were taking pictures by the white screen.

Kurt watched for a while, then examined some of the photos on the wall. He walked to the side, raking his gaze over each photo until he bumped into a desk. Papers flew everywhere though Alex and the customer didn't seem to notice.

Kurt's face grew hot at the embarrassment and he just picked up the papers, nicely placing them on the desk one by one.

And one piece of paper caught his eyes.

He stood up slowly, running his eyes over the words again and again, he could feel his face pale and his hands started to shake. Test results.

He hadn't noticed the customer leaving and Alex was coming towards him, watching some pictures in the camera.

‘'Hey, what do you got th-‘'

‘'Alexandreus,'' Kurt said with teary eyes and a trembling voice. ‘'Are you in the fourth stage of leukemia?''