"I wish I could come with you."

"No you don't." Kurt smiled sadly at Rachel. The two stood in the JFK airport terminal. Burt had helped his son get the first flight available back to Ohio. "You have homework from Tibideaux and July -- and I know you're going to spend the next seventy-two hours perfecting each assignment."

She pursed her lips and nodded.

"Call me after you see him -- if you do, okay?" she hugged him. "and if you see Finn --"

"Rebuff any inquiries about your person." Kurt stated, rolling his eyes. "You've only been broken up a week, Rach. Isn't that some kind of record for you?" he sighed, instantly regretting the comment. "I'm sorry. It's been a crappy week."

"Yeah." Rachel said quietly. "It has."

"Brody coming over later?"

"No." She avoided eye contact, playing with the sleeve of her coat. "I asked him to give me some space. Just...for now."

"Mmm."

"Tell Blaine I said hi," she said, turning to hug him as it was announced that his flight was boarding. "I'll see you on Sunday night."

"Yeah. See you then."

--

Blaine was home.

It had taken a few days, and Cooper had had to speak with the doctors to schedule physical therapy, but to make a painfully long story short (which included several screaming matches over the use of the wheel chair), the younger Anderson was now back to sleeping in his own room, instead of in a hospital bed.

He hated it.

He would rather be at school, or in glee club -- anywhere but here.

Neither of the brothers had heard from their parents. Blaine could hear Cooper leaving voicemails incessantly on either their father or their mother's phones practically every hour.

They had a movie marathon (Cooper let him pick -- and didn't even complain when Blaine chose all four Pirates of the Caribbean movies), and when Blaine fell asleep half way through At World's End, Cooper decided to try calling their parents again. He got up off of the couch and, after covering the eighteen year old with an old afgan of their mother's, went into the kitchen and dialled his mother's cell phone.

Cooper?

The elder sibling barely got over the shock that he'd gotten through on his mother's cell phone for the first time in a week before saying,

"Mom. Nice of you to pick up the phone -- finally."

Selena Anderson sighed irritably.

Cooper is there a reason you're calling? she sounded tired. Your father and I just got back from a very important --

The laugh that escaped his throat wasn't just incredulous -- no, he was furious. Did the words 'Blaine', 'hospital' and the phrase 'paralyzed below the waist' mean nothing?!

"You're kidding me." he choked out. "You -- I've been trying to get ahold of you and Dad for a whole week. Blaine almost died. He's paralyzed below the waist. He's gonna be in a wheel chair for the rest of his life."

If he hadn't gone to New York --

"Don't you dare blame this on his relationship with Kurt -- and since when -- I'm not even going to bother. Look, I know you're wondering, so I'll spit it out: he's not okay. He hasn't been since he woke up. All he cares about is that --"

We're not interested in that boy. Now if you're saying that Blaine ended it, then thank God. Maybe he'll have some sense and bring home a girl.

Cooper felt as though he'd been slapped. Here his little brother was permanantly crippled, and their parents didn't give a shit. Not as long as things were over between him and Kurt.

But wait --

"I -- Is that you, or Dad thinking out loud?" he said shakily, praying he didn't collapse right there in the kitchen. "Mom -- you remember the Sadie Hawkins incident. You were a wreck -- wouldn't leave him for anything." his voice cracked. "You can't be okay with this."

Silence.

Your father needs me. I have to go.

Click! The line went dead. Cooper put his phone on the counter and covered his face with one hand, trying to calm himself down.

He grabbed a paper towel off of the rack and wiped his eyes hastily with it before tossing it into the trash.

When he walked back into the living room, he saw that Blaine was still asleep on the couch. Choking back another sob, he carefully lifted his brother's head, and the pillow it rested on before lowering it on to his lap.

His fingers wound gently through Blaine's out of control curls, stroking them gently.

Calm down, Coop. They may not be here but you are. You can help him get through this. he inhaled deeply. You have to.

--

Kurt's plane ended up being delayed two hours. Still, he was grateful Finn had decided to hang around (predictably in the Food Court) to wait for him.

He wasn't in the mood to take a cab all the way back to Lima.

"Long time no see, bro," his step-brother greeted through a mouthful of burger (Kurt tried to keep his disgust from showing on his face) when he saw him. "You hungry? I got another burger." he gestured to the leftover food on the table he was sitting at.

"Finn, in what world would I ever agree to eat something like that?" he asked exasperatedly.

Finn shrugged and swallowed, before putting the half eaten sandwich down on its tray, and getting up to hug the other boy.

"Missed you, man."

"It's been a week." Kurt smiled a little and hugged him back. "I missed you too."

"So? Things have been...kind of suckish lately." he pulled back from the hug and was silent for a moment. "You sure you're not hungry?"

"I'll eat when we get home." The countertenor shouldered his carry-on bag and waited for Finn to throw out what remained of the food he'd bought before following him out of the terminal. "Finn? Is he...?"

"He's home. Cooper's staying with him."

"Oh." Kurt tried to blink back tears. "I -- Well --" He couldn't seem to get the words out at all. "That's good." he managed finally, hoping his step-brother didn't notice the way his voice cracked.

Finn cast him a sidelong glance as he pulled his keys out of his jeans pocket and moved to unlock the car doors.

"Yeah. I figured maybe -- since you're home, I mean -- maybe you'd want to go see him." he looked uncomfortable for a moment. "I'd go by myself but I don't want him to think that I'm gonna kill him for hurting you -- which I'm not." he added quickly, face reddening. "I wanted to...but then the accident and he was --"

Kurt bit his lip to keep from yelling at his step-brother. He was so tired, and he was in no way, shape or form to hear Finn ramble on about Blaine.

"Finn?"

"Yeah?"

"Just unlock the car. I want to go home."