May 21, 2012, 7 p.m.
The Call
"This was a horrid nightmare, a cruel joke, anything but the truth. There wasn't any way that this could be happening." Kurt gets a call ... Based on the amazing CP Coulter's Dalton on FFN.
K - Words: 5,095 - Last Updated: May 21, 2012 986 0 0 1 Categories: Angst, AU, Romance, Characters: Blaine Anderson, Kurt Hummel, Tags: established relationship, hurt/comfort,
A/N: FIRST! You don't have to read Dalton before reading this. But I suggest it. :D So this is a story I wrote after having months (and months and months and months) of writer's block. I read CP Coulter's Dalton after hearing so much about it and voila! I have a plot bunny running around! Now this is an AU (of an AU O.o Inception status!). It takes place after Kurt, Blaine, and Logan have a ... talk about Logan and Blaine's past. Now I haven't finished reading this chapter so forgive me if things are wrong. Also I couldn't remember how Blaine's bedroom is set up, so sorry for any mistakes there. Feel free to correct on such mistakes and I shall change them gladly. Thank you all for putting up with my nonsense. Now onward!
P.S. I do not own Glee, hell I don't even own the fanfic Dalton, so don't sue!
P.P.S. I wrote this fic purely because I wanted to see Kurt freak out and go mad. Yup. That's it. I'm sadistic. I know it.
It started out like any other day. Coffee cups covering every imaginable surface, Reed hurting himself simply getting out of bed, the twins causing a commotion in the hallway when they rigged a Halloween decoration to moan Dwight's name every time he opened the door, and Charlie yelling at Wes and David for the mess they left the night previous in an intense videogame war. And all before Kurt even properly got breakfast cooked in the finally fixed kitchen. It had been hell relying on the school banquet hall for the past week after Drew's latest chemistry experiment gone wrong.
As Kurt sat down to eat his first proper breakfast in too long, Blaine appeared in the doorway, swooping in to kiss Kurt on the cheek from behind before helping himself to some of Kurt's breakfast.
"You're lucky I had coffee already," Kurt quipped, mock glaring at the shorter boy, all while failing to conceal his smirk. Blaine simply continued chewing and gave him a grin that somehow managed to melt Kurt's heart, cheeks full of food and all. "Someone's in a good mood this morning," Kurt noticed. While Blaine wasn't usually a morning person, he wasn't quite the level of anti-morning that Kurt was before coffee. Today however, the other Warbler was positively giddy with anticipation.
"We get to find out the songs today," he answered, swallowing. "Do you blame me?"
Kurt laughed before replying with a simple "No, I don't."
"So are you done eating yet? I wanna get there early," Blaine said, sneaking another bite from Kurt's plate.
"I just started eating!" Kurt exclaimed. "Just because you keep stealing my food-" here he smacked Blaine's hand as he attempted another morsel "-doesn't mean I'm anywhere near done."
"Oh come on!" Blaine gave Kurt his best pleading look. "I'm just trying to help you!"
Kurt's stern look slipped as he tried to hold back his laughter at Blaine's eagerness. He had been impatiently waiting for weeks for today, wanting to get as many practices in as possible before Nationals. "You do realize that the earlier we get there, the longer we have to wait?"
"But we'll only be a few minutes early by the time we finally leave," Blaine pointed out. "And it's almost time to leave anyway. You know that if we wait for everyone to get ready to go, we'll be late! Reed needs to look perfect, Wes and David are still getting chewed out by Charlie, and the twins … well, need I say more?"
Kurt gave Blaine a look a few minutes more before turning to shove down a few more bites of food and putting his remaining dishes in the sink. Blaine was grinning ear to ear.
"You win today," Kurt sighed, following the other boy out the door, grabbing his hand.
There weren't too many people in the hall when they got there, only a Logan and the Stuart boys and one or two boys from Hanover, but they were all excitedly talking about what songs they thought would help to win them the title at Nationals and who they thought would be picked for solos. Well as excitedly as teenage boys could be on a Friday morning when everyone else was exempt from classes (it was a furlough day for the rest of the school).
When Kurt and Blaine walked into the hall, all the boys went quiet, hoping for Harvey and Medel were the ones walking through the door, as they did with every person who had walked through the doors. Once the boys saw the couple, most went back to their speculation and anxious waiting. Logan held their gaze for a second before nodding and turning back to the other Stuarts.
While things weren't as tumultuous as they once were with the tall blond, things were still tense at times. But bother Logan and Blaine were making an effort to remain civil, if for nothing else than for Kurt's sake. Kurt sighed, still not liking how things turned out despite the fact that they could've turned out worse than they had. But it wasn't as if he could expect the two to be completely buddy-buddy with each other just because he wanted it. The history they had together wasn't something that they could get over easily, if they ever got over it at all. Regardless, Kurt didn't want to ruin Blaine's mood, so he pushed the thoughts back to a corner of his mind and followed the other boy to the other side of the hall to take their seats and wait for Harvey and Medel and the rest of the Warblers, most of those who were left part of Windsor house, though no one was surprised. It took a miracle just to be able to escape the confines of the dormitory without sustaining some sort of injury.
It didn't take long for the rest of the group to fall in, and the meeting was underway within fifteen minutes of Blaine and Kurt arriving in the hall.
"Alright everyone, onto the next subject," Harvey said, anticipating the commotion his sentence would cause. "Now I know you all are excited about this, but I have a few things to say beforehand." Everyone groaned.
In the back, Kurt felt his phone vibrate. While normally he would simply assume it was a text from Mercedes with the latest update on drama or a rant, his phone kept ringing. A call. No one would call him now. Kurt chanced a look at his phone, curious. His brow furrowed as the word 'Dad' flashed across his screen. His dad never called when he thought his son might be in school; much less this early in case Kurt happened to be sleeping in the case that he wasn't in class. But before Kurt could react to the call, it stopped and the missed call screen started flashing. Kurt shrugged it off. He doubted whatever it was could be that important. More likely, his dad had tried to make breakfast and Carole was at work and he tried to contact Kurt for help before realizing that he shouldn't call.
"-try things differently this-"
Before Kurt could even catch up on what he'd missed, his phone vibrated again. Twice. Kurt pulled his phone out of his pocket again to check who the texts were from. He was starting to get a sinking feeling in his stomach. It was the same feeling he got when he was told about his dad being in the hospital. It couldn't be happening again, could it?
"Everything ok?" Blaine whispered to Kurt, noticing the other boy tense up.
"I don't know," he replied, flipping his phone open. One text was from Finn and the other from … Carole? Kurt didn't even knew she could text. He read hers first seeing as how it Finn's was probably about Rachel than anything else.
To: Kurt Hummel
From: Carole Hummel
I know you're in school, honey, but call us as soon as you get a chance.
Love you.
Ok … Maybe he should check Finn's, just in case.
To: Kurt Hummel
From: Finn Hudson
dude ur dads freaking out. idk whats wrong. call asap
Goosebumps covered Kurt's arms. Something was wrong. A numb feeling settled in Kurt's stomach, as he rose to leave the hall.
"Kurt? Is there a reason you're leaving?" Harvey's voice was curt at being disrupted. Every eye in the hall turned to him, Blaine's and several of the Windsor boys' in concern.
"There's something wrong," he said, trying not to yell. They didn't know. Kurt was trying to remain composed, as much was possible when there his dad might be in trouble.
"What? What-"
"My dad," Kurt cut Harvey off. His voice was strained, gaining an urgency to it that started to scare the directors and the boys. "There's something wrong. He never calls me. I've got to call him back." Kurt's voice had a finality to it that Harvey could not argue with, and with that Kurt walked just far enough out of the hall that he could call his dad back.
The phone only rang once, but it was the longest ring of Kurt's life. "Kurt." Kurt simultaneously sighed in relief at his dad's voice and tensed up at the tone of it. He'd only heard that kind of hurt in his father's voice once. And his life had forever changed after that. It couldn't happen again.
"Dad, what's wrong?" There was a heavy silence on the other end as his dad tried to figure out what he wanted to say. "Dad?"
"I shouldn't have called you. Not yet. I know you're in class. Just call me after ok?"
"Is it your heart?" Kurt pressed, anxious to get the news out of his father.
"God, no! Listen, Kurt-"
"Dad, I know there's something wrong. Now tell me before I come down there!" Kurt demanded, knowing full well it would get him what he wanted.
"Look, kid … I- I got a call today. It was about your mother." Kurt's back went ramrod straight and his brain blanked.
"What … about mom?"
"She …" a shuddering breath came over the phone. "They were going over her files again. For the records or some thing like that. Someone caught it. I don't know why they didn't catch it before. She … She-they were wrong."
"What? What. Do you mean? She di-didn't have cancer?" Kurt's throat closed up. He couldn't breathe properly.
"She had, well, she had masses, but they weren't what they thought. They say she had some sort of disease. It just manifested differently in your mother. She could've -"
"Don't say it, please."
"She could've lived, son." Silence. "Kurt? You still there?"
"I have to call you back." The answer was barely above a whisper and forced through his teeth. Kurt heard pulsing in his ears, and his head hurt.
"Kurt?" Blaine had somehow materialized behind him, concerned for the other boy. The entire hall had been able to hear the conversation. In his haste, Kurt hadn't closed the door and it was obvious that whatever was going on shouldn't have been overheard by the whole of the Warblers. But curiosity got the best of them, and they had come to make sure one of their own was ok.
But Kurt couldn't answer Blaine. This was a horrid nightmare, a cruel joke, anything but the truth. There wasn't any way that this could be happening. His mother, his beautiful, loving, caring, understanding mother. Kind and sweet. She could've been saved. He didn't have to watch her die, didn't have to watch her wilt away, leaving behind a non-human. She didn't have to die.
Blaine gently put a hand on Kurt's shoulder, to try to get him to come back from wherever he had retreated to in his mind. Kurt's face was flushed, his knuckles white as his fingers dug into his palm, already drawing droplets of red liquid. Blaine had never seen Kurt even remotely like this.
Kurt felt something touch his shoulder bringing him out of his thoughts and reacted. He flung Blaine's hand from his shoulder, simultaneously punching the wall with the hand he held his phone with.
"She didn't have to die! They killed her! She didn't-"
With every other word, Kurt punched the wall, trying to feel something other than the despair consuming him. While still not quite believing what he was seeing, Blaine was the first to react and lunged at Kurt, grabbing him around the arms. Most of the Warblers stood in the doorway, still too shocked at how quickly the situation had deteriorated. Among them, the twins and Logan were the only ones who leapt forward, the twins going after Kurt's legs as Blaine lifted him into the air, and Logan trying to grab a hold of Kurt's middle to stop him from flailing so. But they underestimate the countertenor. Kurt managed to free his legs from the twins within seconds and, in the process, Logan by accidentally kicking his shin. Only Blaine still held on as Kurt landed on the floor.
"KURT!" he bellowed, trying to get through to the boy, using every ounce of training he had to amplify his voice. It seemed to work some as Kurt stopped yelling and struggling just enough so that Blaine could get a better grip on the boy. Blaine continued to hold on as Kurt worked through the emotions going through his head, leaving a sobbing empty boy in his arms.
"Ms. Medel, take the twins and Logan to the nurse. The rest of you, go back to your dorms," Harvey said, finally snapping to once Kurt fell limply into Blaine's arms. "Now!" he said more forcefully when the Warblers showed no intention of leaving. The boys jumped at the sudden loudness and left slowly, skirting around where the couple had sunk down to the floor, each giving Kurt a pitying and concerned look. Medel looked hesitant as well, not sure if she should leave the unstable boy with just Blaine and Harvey. After a few seconds' deliberation, Medel decided that the worst of it was over and it was now safe to leave.
"Come on, boys," she said to the remaining Warblers.
"We're fine," Logan said, trying to stand up without wincing.
"Yeah," said Ethan.
"Not even a bruise," said Evan.
The twins hadn't stopped watching Kurt from where he sat on the floor, too concerned to really give an effort to convincing Medel that they were alright.
"It's not up for discussion," Harvey interjected before Medel could say anything. "If you don't need the nurse, then go back to your dormitories."
The boys sighed and turned to follow Medel, glancing back every so often as they walked down the hallway.
Blaine's heart was still beating hard, not knowing what to think of what had just happened. That kind of raw emotion he hadn't seen since his fight with Logan last year, and it had seriously injured him that time. Blaine had no idea as to what could make Kurt react like that. It was … scary.
"Kurt," Harvey said softly, trying to elicit a response from the boy in Blaine's arms. "Kurt, can you talk to me?"
There was pause before Kurt muffled something quietly into Blaine's now ruined shirt. Harvey looked to Blaine for help. He slowly rubbed Kurt's back for a second and took a deep breath before asking, "Kurt, what happened? What did your dad say?"
It was a quiet whisper that responded. "She didn't have to die. They could've saved her."
"Your mom?" Blaine's brow furrowed, trying to make sense of Kurt's answer.
"I watched her die for a year and a half and they … She could've …" Kurt's voice trailed into a sob.
Blaine looked up to Harvey, at a loss as to what to do. Harvey looked to Kurt. "Go back to the dormitory. We'll deal with this when he's had some time."
Blaine nodded, and started pulling Kurt up with him. "Come on," he said gently. "Let's go get you cleaned up."
Kurt stood, wiping his face on his sleeve, and let Blaine lead him. He didn't care right now. He was too empty and too full all at once to deal with anything right now.
The walk back to the dormitory was a blur and Kurt was only mildly aware of the sudden silence that enveloped the house once he walked through the door, something previously thought not possible in Windsor House. The only thing Kurt knew was that he didn't want Blaine to leave, as the other boy found out when he tried to take Kurt to his own room.
"I don't want to be alone," Kurt whispered hoarsely. "Please."
It only took one look in Kurt's misted blue eyes, red-rimmed form crying so forcefully for Blaine to decide that Kurt would spend the night in his room, and led him down the hall.
While he was shorter than the other boy, Blaine was sure that his pajamas would do just fine and led Kurt to the bathroom, clothes in hand. The plain grey shirt and black gym shorts that he had dug out of some far corner of his closet (Blaine preferred to sleep in boxers since getting his own room) wasn't anything fancy, like the usual thing that Kurt wore, but it would do. He led his guest to the bathroom and sat him on the toilet, and then proceeded to get a wet rag.
"You want to call your dad back?" Blaine asked. He was kneeling in front of Kurt, wiping off his face with the cool rag.
"No." The usually emotional boy sounded hollow. It worried Blaine. "I can't … Not now."
Blaine nodded, and moved on to Kurt's hair, caring for the other in a time when he couldn't. This was one of three times since knowing Kurt that the boy didn't have perfectly styled hair.
"Why don't you change and maybe we can watch TV?" Blaine suggested. It was mindless. Kurt wouldn't have to think. Kurt tried to manage a small smile for the boy taking care of him, but it looked more like a grimace. Blaine appreciated the effort. He closed the door behind him thinking about what movie to put on. He sighed and sat heavily on his bed, holding his head in his hands. He felt … he didn't know how he felt. God could only imagine how Kurt felt. Blaine was tired and they had only left the house an hour ago. It was only ten in the morning and Blaine was wishing today had never started. The images of Kurt's emotional breakdown kept flashing through his head. He hadn't any idea that Kurt could be filled with so much rage. It only brought to light how little Blaine really knew about the other, despite the hours upon hours of talking they did and the fact that they had been living in the same house for several months now. Right now, the most prevalent emotion in Blaine's head was worry. Worry about how Kurt was going to deal with not only the situation, but the fact that he'd made a scene in the hallway, the backlash of his breakdown. And more than that, worry about how qualified he was to handle this. Sure, he'd had tough times behind him, but this was entirely different. He was used to being the one in the middle of these types of things, Blaine knew how to push through and pretend like nothing had even happened, but knowing he had to support Kurt through this was daunting. He'd never had a boyfriend long enough for this to have happened, and Logan had never been the type to need emotional support.
Blaine shook his head and got up from the bed. He needed to be the level headed one right now. He went over to the cabinet that contained all his DVDs. Any Disney movie was out, seeing as how all Disney characters had mother issues. No drama, horror, or suspense either. He wanted a mindless movie that he and Kurt could zone out on. He supposed a musical would do, seeing as they probably new every one out there. They'd only watched each one they had about three times since they met. Phantom of the Opera, was out, as well as Newsies, and Rodger and Hammerstein's Cinderella. Ah! Rent would be great! It wasn't as if they knew every word by heart. Blaine smirked to himself, recalling all the times Rent songs had featured in their lives.
Blaine finished setting up the movie as Kurt came out of the bathroom. Despite having been through an emotional trauma not half an hour ago, Blaine couldn't help but find Kurt a mixture of adorable and sexy when wearing his clothes. There was something in that action that moved something in Blaine that he would have to explore later on, after he'd made sure Kurt was ok.
Kurt, while still mostly numb, felt a bit uncomfortable in the clothes he was wearing. They were so unstructed and the fabric so unlike the silk, cashmere, and other assorted expensive fabrics he was used to. But had an undeniable quality that was completely Blaine. It didn't hurt that it smelled like Blaine too, that soft smell of the body wash and deodorant that he used. Blaine had managed to change in the time that Kurt was in the bathroom, trying to regain his composure. He now wore a pair of grey sweats and plain white shirt that fitted tighter on Blaine, showing off his torso fairly well.
"Do you just want to lie down? I chose Rent. I hope you don't mind?" Blaine was now second guessing his choice. What if he picked wrong? What if- but Kurt just climbed into Blaine's bed and under the comforters, deciding that was answer enough. Blaine smiled and climbed into bed with Kurt, the other boy moving to lay on him once he was settled. Blaine wrapped his arms around Kurt.
For the better part of the movie, neither boy moved, nor attempted to talk. They were content as they were, giving and receiving what they needed. About halfway through the movie, Blaine was sure the Kurt had fallen asleep if the deep breathing was anything to go by, so he contented himself for the rest of the movie with playing with Kurt's hair. It wasn't ever really something he had done before, too afraid to mess up his perfectly sculpted coif, and Blaine found it to be quite relaxing, almost falling asleep himself towards the end.
As the credits rolled, Blaine decided whether to get up and look for the remote, or to continue playing with Kurt's hair, a luxury he might not get for a while. He choice was voided when a quiet voice started coming from the boy on his chest.
"She was amazing," Kurt whispered. Blaine tensed, not realizing the he had been awake. But Kurt only continued. "They knew when I was little. They knew I was gay even back then. My dad told me. Most boys wanted to be like their dads. I wanted to be like my mom. She was so beautiful. For a while they tried to get me to like boy stuff. I was in soccer in elementary school. Pretty decent forward. As well as you can be at eight. Got action figures for Christmas. I didn't mind them. I liked most of them. But I wanted the Barbie stuff too. My mom, she would go with me to get it. I think she knew I wouldn't change so just indulged me. On days when my dad would be home late, we would dress up. I would be the mommy and she would be the daddy and we'd have 'tea' for dinner."
Blaine chuckled at this, fully able to imagine a little Kurt running around in his mother's clothes.
"She had this … grace about her. I think she's where I got all my talent from in the singing/fashion department from. Princess Di had nothing on her." Kurt knew he was rambling, but he couldn't stop. "I remember the first time we rushed her to the hospital. She'd been sick for a week before, and wasn't getting any better, despite what she said. She tried to do too much and collapsed. I was the only one home. I called 911. I was eleven. The doctors didn't know what was wrong with her for a while. Then they took the x-rays and did the CAT scan. Cancer they said. Six months. That's what they gave her."
"She didn't want chemo. Said she was going to go with her wits about her, do as much as she could while she could. And for a while after it was ok. Every once in a while she would get sick. It got worse over time though. She started coughing up blood. Her and dad fought a lot. I didn't know what was wrong. They wouldn't tell me. They had only told me that mommy was sick but that she was fighting it. A week before she …" Kurt took a shuddering breath, trying to remain numb. "A couple days before she died, they rushed her to the hospital. She was too skinny. She had been losing weight rapidly now. I got the call at school. Sent me up to the principal's office. He said my mom was very sick and my dad was coming to pick me up. She went into a coma before we got there. Doctors did everything they could. It was only then did my dad tell me she was going to die. That was the only other time I lost control. I haven't since. I don't remember much but they had to give me a sedative. When I woke up, my dad was there. My mom was getting worse, so they took me to her room. What was in that room, wasn't my mother. My mom was beautiful, warm, and alive. The woman in that room was a shell of a woman, she looked more dead than alive. I was scared of her."
"Dad prayed. He'd never done that. He didn't believe in God. But he prayed that night. I prayed. She died the next morning. I didn't believe in God after that. I also didn't want to live. The bullying at school was getting worse. Kids stopped making fun of my voice or that I like girl things and started making fun of me for being a fag. My mom died. I didn't know how to get along with my dad without my mom there to be on my side. We didn't talk much after that." Kurt moved to touch the inside of his bicep. "I only cut once," he said pushing up his sleeve, half showing himself, half showing Blaine, who sucked in his breath sharply, "but once was enough. A teacher saw. They called my dad, recommended a therapist."
"I hated it at first. I didn't like the lady. She asked too many questions. But after a while I got used to her. She helped me through a lot of stuff. We never talked about the bullying, but after she helped me with what had happened with my mom, everything else seemed so … petty. I still didn't get on well with my dad for a while. That came later. Everything else though. I could deal with it."
"Dad released Mom's medical records to the hospital for student work and all that. Someone was going over her file. She … she never had cancer. It was a disease. I don't know what. I hung up before Dad told me." Kurt went quiet for a few seconds. Blaine struggled with staying quiet to let Kurt continue, or to jump in.
Kurt looked up at Blaine, and the vulnerability, the fact that Kurt was laying it all on the table for him left Blaine breathless. "I don't know what to feel. I feel numb. She could still be here …" his voice trailed off and his eyes closed to ward off the coming tears.
"Kurt," Blaine grabbed his chin, forcing Kurt to face him. "Look at me." Kurt reluctantly did so. "I can't imagine how hard this is for you. How hard any of this was, but do you realize who you are because of all the hardships you've gone through. You're incredibly independent, headstrong, fearless, unafraid to be who you are. You had some shitty cards dealt your way, but you've become a better person for it. I'm not saying that what happened is good, but look at yourself. You're amazing. It's going to take a while to get over this, and it'll be hard, but I'll help you as much as you'll allow me. Ok?"
Kurt just stared at Blaine for a minute before letting out a deep breath. "Ok," he said before resting on Blaine's chest again. Both laid there for a while, each in their own thoughts.
"Can you turn that damn TV off?" Kurt said after the music for the Rent DVD had played for about the fifth time.
Blaine chuckled quietly, finding the remote and turning the "damn TV" off. There was another moment of silence before Kurt interrupted it again. This with, "Did I really just make that big of a scene in front of everyone?" with a wince.
Blaine made a face as well, knowing it'd be all over the school by lunch. "Yeah … Sorry, love."
"I'm sorry," Kurt mumbled quietly into his shirt. Judging by the hue of the boy's face, he was about to die of shame.
"Don't be," was all Blaine could think of to reply.
"I wish you hadn't seen me like that."
"I haven't always been at my best around you," Blaine countered trying to placate Kurt.
"Not like that though," Kurt managed to get through a yawn. Bringing up so much from a past he was worked hard to forget was tiring. While he still felt numb, not quite yet ready to accept the reality he was dealing with, Kurt felt something. He felt better. Embarrassed and ashamed of the ways he reacted, yes, but better.
"I don't care. Try to get some sleep for a bit." He resumed rubbing Kurt's back.
"I don't mind you playing with my hair," Kurt said, almost hopefully. Blaine laughed softly, playing with Kurt's hair again. "Just this once though."
It didn't take long for Kurt to fall into a deep sleep, leaving Blaine with his thoughts. The next few days would be hell, that much was sure. Between keeping the questions and prying at bay, and dealing with Harvey and Medel and their pitying looks, and trying to keep Kurt from breaking from it all, Blaine knew they were in for a rough patch, but they'd be ok. Kurt was worth it anyway. Blaine smiled down at the boy laying on him, and then decided to follow suit and worry about all that when he woke up.