Kurt wondered for the umpteenth time what the hell he was doing here. He was currently hiking out in the woods with Blaine. Why, for the love of Gaga, had he agreed to this? He hates hiking and he isn’t particularly fond of the woods. The only redeeming thing about this excursion is that he was able to purchase a new outfit for it, including new boots. He probably should have worn the boots a few more times before hiking in them. His feet were going to mutiny if they hiked much longer.

“Blaine, when are we going to be back to the car?” Kurt asked not-so-patiently. They’d already been out for almost three hours.

“About an hour more. Why? Aren’t you having a good time?”

Kurt debated what he should say to that. One the one hand, they were always honest with each other. On the other hand, he didn’t want to hurt Blaine’s feelings. He had been planning this for several weeks.

“Blaine, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but I’m not exactly the outdoorsy type. My idea of enjoying the animal kingdom is people watching at the mall and wearing my accessories,” Kurt joked. Certainly Blaine knew all this. He had to know that Kurt was here for him and only for him. Sure, the fall leaves were pretty and had given him inspiration on some new wardrobe combinations, but that was where his appreciation ended.

Blaine stopped walking and turned to face Kurt.

“Thank you for indulging me. I know you don’t love to hike,” Blaine said. He placed a little kiss on the tip of Kurt’s cold nose. It was cloudy out and the wind had picked up. Kurt was dressed in layers, of course, but still felt chilled.

“I still can’t believe you’re wearing flannel, Blaine. Flannel! That is Finn territory,” Kurt teased.

“Flannel is warm and snuggly!” Blaine protested. “It’s perfect for hiking.”

Kurt felt a drop of water splash on his cheek. He looked up in horror to see that the clouds had turned dark and ominous. When he looked back at Blaine he could see shiny drops of water hitting his face as well. Blaine looked apologetic.

“Blaine, it’s raining,” Kurt informed him needlessly.

“Kurt, I swear I checked the weather and there wasn’t any rain in the forecast!”

As if to mock them, the heavens chose that moment to open up and unleash a torrent of rain. Lightening streaked across the darkening sky followed by a loud clap of thunder.

“Shit! We’ve got to get out of this. What do we do now, Boy Scout?” Kurt asked. Kurt was never going hiking again. This was ridiculous.

“Let’s find some shelter to wait it out,” Blaine suggested. He grabbed Kurt’s hand and fled off the path and towards a large outcropping of rocks.

They had almost made it to the rocks when Kurt went down hard in the mud. He felt a sharp pain in his knee.

“Kurt!” Blaine stopped running and knelt down in the mud next to Kurt.

“It’s my knee. I think I twisted it or something when I stepped in a hole,” Kurt said miserably.

“Okay, I’ll just carry you then.” Blaine put one arm under Kurt’s thighs and the other around his back. Kurt just sat there.

“You can’t carry me, Blaine. I’m bigger than you,” Kurt reminded him.

“I bet I can, but fine. Just use me as a crutch.” Blaine supported Kurt as he stood on his good leg and they hobbled over to the rocks. They quickly found a ledge big enough for them to sit under and crawled in.

Kurt thought of a thousand snarky things he could say. He was really pissed now, but he knew he couldn’t take it out on Blaine. Blaine didn’t control the weather and he obviously didn’t make Kurt get injured. Kurt knew that he already felt awful anyway, he was doing that lip thing he always does when he’s uncomfortable.

“Blaine, stop worrying.”

“You’re not mad?” Blaine asked eagerly.

“Oh, I’m plenty mad, but not at you. I know you didn’t mean for the hike to turn out this way. I can see you mentally beating yourself up over there and that’s not helpful,” Kurt answered honestly.

“I really am sorry,” Blaine said scooting closer. Kurt shivered as Blaine put an arm around him.

“God, I’m freezing…and wet…and my knee is throbbing,” Kurt complained. Kurt pressed around his knee experimentally. He let out a stream of curse words. It hurt. It hurt a lot. Now, Kurt knew that a lot of people thought he was delicate, but the truth is that he is pretty damn tough. The fact his knee hurt so much worried him. He just hoped his knee wasn’t too messed up, or worse, permanently damaged.

Blaine pulled out his phone and checked for signal. Kurt pulled out his and did the same. Nothing. Not a single bar.

Kurt couldn’t stop shivering. His teeth were chattering together loudly. This was worse than being slushied, so much worse.

“Kurt, we’ve got to get you warmed up. Come here, lean back against me.” Blaine shifted so that Kurt could lean back against him. His back felt instantly warmer. Blaine snaked his hands between Kurt’s outer layers and his undershirt and rubbed his hands up and down vigorously.

“How are your hands so warm, Blaine? They feel like sunshine,” Kurt purred. The warmth was seeping into him like liquid heat.

“You better not be going into shock. Is that really helping?”

“Pretty sure I’m not in shock. I feel fine except for my knee and being cold. And yes, you’re helping with the cold part,” Kurt said. He really doubted he was going into shock. He knew he needed medical attention, though. If they were stuck out here too much longer he wasn’t sure what was going to happen to him.

“Good,” Blaine said snuggling into him. The rain was still pouring down, but the thunder didn’t sound like it was right on top of them anymore. At least the storm was moving. Hopefully, they would soon be back to civilization and coffee and cozy blankets.

Kurt shivered for a different reason when Blaine’s fingers slowly circled his naval. Blaine must have felt him shiver because suddenly his hands were back to their vigorous rubbing.

“How’s your knee doing?” Blaine asked against his neck.
“Hurts. It feels swollen.”

Their clothes were more or less dry now, except for where they were pressed against each other. Blaine’s hair was a mess of dark waves and crunchy strands poking every which way. Kurt didn’t even want to know what his looked like. He probably resembled a drowned rat. His new clothes were absolutely ruined. The black mud stains would never come out; there were some things that were beyond even the best dry cleaners abilities.

Kurt closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of the rain mixed with earth and decaying autumn leaves. It was strangely calming, even more so than the smell of his new leather jumpsuit.

“I wish I could do something to make it better. I feel so useless,” Blaine sighed.

“I just wish we could get out of here. What time is it now?” Kurt asked. He felt like they’d been sitting under the rock for hours now, but it couldn’t have been that long. Blaine checked his phone.

“It’s almost 2:00 now. I guess I should have brought a lunch along.”

“Do we have any water left?” Kurt wondered aloud. Blaine jiggled the SIGG water bottle hanging from his belt loop. It was very close to empty. Damn it.

“My dad expected us back around noon. Blaine, what are we going to do? You think we’re an hour from the car still?”

“Well, I think we are an hour from the car if you were able to walk properly. I don’t think we should try to walk it when there is still lightening, especially with your knee like that,” Blaine said. “I just wish our phones were getting reception here. That would solve a lot of our problems.”

“Hey, give me the water bottle, I just thought of something!” Kurt said. He took the bottle from Blaine and tried to scoot to the edge of the rock overhang.

“Ouch, dammit, I can’t reach. Will you put this out in the rain? It can collect some water. Then we’ll at least have something to drink.” Blaine took the bottle from Kurt and crawled to the edge of their shelter. He stuck his arm out in the rain and set the bottle down on a flat area so it could catch the rain.

“Great idea, Kurt! One problem down, how many to go?” Blaine joked.

“Can you get back behind me, please? I’m getting all cold again.” Kurt could feel the goosebumps prickling on his arms. Blaine smiled and wrapped himself back around Kurt’s lean body.

“You can do that thing with your hands again, too,” Kurt offered.

“You mean this thing?” Blaine murmured as he dipped his hands back between Kurt’s layers. Kurt felt a tremor pass through his body. He really loved Blaine’s hands and someday…someday those hands would touch him everywhere, maybe even someday soon.

“I love you, Blaine.”

Blaine kissed him on the ear before whispering, “I love you, too, Kurt.”

The boys sat sandwiched together in silence listening to the rain and thunder. Kurt could feel the beating of Blaine’s heart against his back. It was funny how even in the most miserable, worst conditions you can find beauty and peace. Kurt knew it was that truth that had kept him going through all the dark times in his life. Even when the bullying was at its worst, even when his dad was slipping close to death, there was always a glimmer of something beautiful or a particle of hope that he could see.

So, here now he would soak in all the goodness he could to sustain him. Kurt was wrapped up in Blaine’s warmth, his love, his heart, hands and amber eyes. Being with Blaine didn’t erase the pain, not at all; it soothed it, made it tolerable. It anchored him.

“Blaine, you’re not falling asleep are you?” Kurt asked quietly. Blaine’s breathing had become slow and rhythmic. It had been awhile since he’d moved, too.

“Nah ‘sleep,” he mumbled. Kurt smirked. He totally was sleeping. Kurt couldn’t have slept even if he tried. He was stiff and uncomfortable and outdoors. His stomach rumbled loudly.

“Blaine. Blaine, will you get the water for me?”Kurt asked giving a tiny nudge to his boyfriend. Blaine groggily retrieved the water and handed it to Kurt. He took a few gulps and let Blaine have a turn to drink.

Kurt nearly jumped out of his skin as a loud crack of thunder sounded in the sky and lightening turned everything white.

“Oh my god!” he yelled. “I thought the storm was moving away from us.”

“I think this is a different one. Looks like we’re stuck here for a while longer,” Blaine said apologetically. He returned the water bottle to its perch so they could gather more water before snuggling back up to Kurt.

Another impossibly loud crash of thunder rattled Kurt’s bones. It seemed that the lightening was directly over them with the way the woods lit up and the electrical buzz in the air around them. Thank goodness they were under some shelter. Kurt wasn’t ready to die; he hadn’t completed his bucket list. He hadn’t even had sex, yet. He suddenly felt very young and vulnerable.

“We have to get out of here,” Kurt said with determination.

“We will, Kurt, I promise. But we have to wait this out. It’s too dangerous to be out in the open right now.” Kurt’s heart ached at the way Blaine’s voice wavered when he spoke.

They watched the sky light up with lightening. It really was spectacular, if not a bit scary. And then Blaine’s gorgeous face was in front of him and getting closer until their lips were touching and tongues were tumbling. Kurt pushed forward, deeper into the kiss relishing the intimacy. God, he loved the way Blaine cupped his face in his warm hand. It fit so perfectly.

“That’s one way to keep my mind off my knee,” Kurt said against Blaine’s lips. Blaine laughed silently, sending a puff of warm air into Kurt’s mouth.

“Does it still hurt a lot?”

“It’s kind of just a constant dull pain now. We’ve been sitting here so long I’m not sure I’ll be able to stand, you’ll have to drag me down the path like you’re a Neanderthal,” Kurt teased.

“Tell me about your ideal day. Say you have a whole day to yourself, how would you spend it?” Blaine asked. Kurt knew what he was doing. He did this sometimes when Kurt was upset or angry or down about something. He would distract him by getting him to dream about the future or better times.

“Hmmm, that’s easy. A day at the spa,” Kurt stated. He told Blaine all about the various treatments he would get and what they were used for. “But, then I’d finish the day with you. We would curl up with my organic popcorn and your Jujubes and a musical. Not sure which one, depends on what my mood is that day. Then, we would fall asleep before it was over and my dad would just let you stay instead of making you go home. That would be the best day.”

“That sounds wonderful, especially the last part.” Blaine groaned as he stretched his legs and arms out straight. Kurt tried to do the same with his functioning limbs.

“Hey, when was the last time we heard thunder?” Kurt asked. He’d been so wrapped up in his day spa daydream he’d stopped noticing the storm.

“I’m not sure, but it looks like the rain is letting up. Maybe it will actually stop soon,” Blaine said hopefully.
Kurt looked at his phone. It was 3:42. His dad was probably losing his mind. Kurt was punctual. His dad would have tried calling his phone when he didn’t arrive home on time. Kurt wished he had a way to let his dad know where he was and what had happened. He hated when his dad worried about him.

Finally, around quarter past four, the storm had passed them. There was still a bit of rain drizzling down, but the sky wasn’t as dark and the electrical storm was now far from them.

“You ready to try and get out of here, Kurt?” Blaine asked. Kurt just gave him a look.

“Help me scoot out of here,” Kurt replied.

It took them a few minutes working together, but Kurt finally got into a position he thought he might be able to stand from. Blaine got out first, standing and stretching to get his legs working again and then reached down to help Kurt up. Relying heavily on Blaine, Kurt was able to get up on his good leg and hobble out from the rock shelter. Blaine left him to lean against the rock while he reattached the SIGG bottle to his belt loop.

“Just let me know if you need to stop and rest or anything. Let’s go!”

Kurt’s legs felt like they were made out of cement. They were heavy and tingly and his knee was hurting more now that he was up. He hopped alongside Blaine until they made it back on to the path. Just that short distance already had him winded. As they took a short rest, Kurt was overwhelmed with how long the return to the Navigator was going to take.

When they had initially set out on their hike Kurt had been pleased to see the small, dirt parking lot empty. It meant they could hold hands or stop to kiss without being bothered. Now he cursed the fact it also meant there had been no other people to stop and help them and nobody would have come since the thunderstorm, either.

They set a pattern of walking for about 5 minutes and then resting for a few. Every time they would stop and rest they would whip out their phones and check for bars. After doing this about 5 times Kurt thought he could hear something. It didn’t sound like an animal or the stream that was nearby.

“Kurt, that sounds like someone yelling our names!” Blaine said excitedly. Kurt listened intently to see if he could hear their names, too.

“Kurt! Blaine!” Their names floated through the humid air like a delightful melody.

“Dad! Dad we’re here!” Kurt yelled back to the disembodied voice. Kurt sat down in the mud while Blaine cupped his hands to his mouth and shouted to his dad, guiding him to them.

As soon as his dad’s baseball cap came into view the tears let loose. His dad was running.

“Dad! Your heart! Stop running, we’re here!” he yelled. He saw his dad slow down to a walk and then pick back up to a jog when he saw Kurt on the ground.

“What the hell happened?”Burt asked as he knelt down beside Kurt. Kurt threw his arms around him and cried and laughed in relief.

“I hurt my knee. We’ll tell you the whole sorry experience on the way back,” Kurt said. Burt scooped Kurt up off the ground and started walking back down the path.

“Dad, you can’t carry me! You’ll hurt yourself,” Kurt protested. What was it with the men in his life and their desire to carry him?

“Like hell I can’t. Exercise is good for the heart, Kurt. Doctor said so,” Burt retorted. Kurt looked over to Blaine for support, but found him smiling like a loon.

“We can take turns,” Blaine offered enthusiastically.

“Oh my god, can this just be over already?” Kurt begged nobody in particular.

“Burt, how did you find us?” Blaine asked.

“I’ve got that GPS tracking gadget on the Navigator. When you guys didn’t show up and I couldn’t get through to either of you by phone I started to worry. The thunderstorm was bad enough to send warnings over the TV and radio. That’s when I tracked you and came out here. I didn’t get out of the truck until the worst of the storm had gone over, or I would have been here sooner.”

“I’ve never been so happy to be stalked,” Kurt said leaning his head on Burt’s shoulder.

“I’m just glad I found you, kid," Burt said, unable to keep the emotion out of his voice.

The boys spent the walk back to the car telling Burt about their hiking trip from hell. Burt was relieved that they had found shelter; he told them that he had seen lighting strike down in the woods while he sat in his truck.

They ended up having to stop several times to rest on the way back to the vehicles. Kurt wouldn’t let Blaine carry him, but he did use him as a crutch during the last stretch to give his dad a break.

Kurt had never been so happy to see his Navigator until he realized he would be unable to drive. Blaine drove Kurt in the Navigator and they followed Burt in his truck to the emergency care clinic. Burt drove them to a drive-through so they could order some food on the way. Kurt was so hungry he didn’t even care that is was greasy and unnatural.

Kurt was exhausted by the time they left the clinic. It was dark and raining as they walked to their vehicles. Kurt was under orders to keep his leg wrapped and up for a few days. He also had been given instructions to ice it several times a day and do some special exercises that he was not looking forward to. He was relieved that his injury wasn’t bad enough to need surgery.

Blaine insisted on helping him to bed. Once Kurt was comfortable between the sheets he pulled Blaine down to sit next to him. He just wasn’t ready to part, yet.

“Don’t go. Stay with me,” Kurt asked pathetically.

“Kurt, you’re dad will kill me. Besides, my parents want me home.”

Kurt wasn’t going down without a fight, especially now that the painkillers had kicked in. He wrapped his hand around the back of Blaine’s neck and pressed their lips together. He felt Blaine relax into the soft, sweet kiss.

“That’s not fair,” Blaine said against his lips, his voice low and rough.

“I don’t think you want me to get started on what’s fair, Blaine,” Kurt started. Blaine sat back looking like he’d been struck.

“Kurt, I’m so sorry. I know all of this is my fault. I never meant for us to get stuck in a storm or for you to get hurt or…” Kurt silenced him with another kiss.

“Stop. I already told you I’m not mad at you.” They sat back against the pillows. Blaine wrapped his arms around Kurt, holding him tight, and Kurt laid his head on his shoulder.

“I really am sorry,” Blaine repeated, kissing Kurt on the top of the head.

“Just promise me one thing.”

“Anything, Kurt.”

“Promise never to ask me to go hiking again!”

“Promise,” Blaine vowed. He cupped Kurt’s cheek and kissed him goodnight.