FIC: Meanwhile, Back at the Shelter
Title: Meanwhile, Back at the Shelter
Pair: Klaine, Burt/Carole
Word Count: ~3175
Summary: It’s the zombie apocalypse! Ten weeks ago back at the Columbus shelter.
The road so far...
The Conception of Hope -> Human Kindness -> No Home Left to Run From -> Chasing Ghosts -> Water Break -> Unsafe -> Only Us
And now…
Ten Weeks Ago
As Burt’s eyes scanned over the enormous indoor stadium, which was filling with more and more people every hour, his chest began to swell with anxiety, and he realized he may have made a horrible mistake.
“Not good. This is nooot good.”
Two days ago, Burt had rounded up his family within a few hours of hearing reports of some kinda awful viral outbreak in Indiana. It hardly sounded real, but the stuff Carole had heard from her coworkers at the hospital was even worse than what they’d had on the news that day, so he told Finn to get whatever friends of his he could to meet with him after school and headed out. By the time they were all on the road, the kids were getting the news on their phones that people near the Indiana boarder should head to Columbus for their own safety.
In the beginning, there had been every intention of swinging by Westerville to pick up Kurt. He’d cut out of school early to visit Blaine (Finn had spilled once Burt started asking when Kurt would get home) and apparently the boys were making a day of it. First Kurt hadn’t answered his phone, and Blaine didn’t pick up either, but Burt had to keep it together and just drive. When they reached the turnoff, they found the road blocked by two police cars and a row of wooden barricades.
Turned out there was another outbreak in Westerville.
The parents had banded together and convinced their kids to come along despite protests that they couldn’t leave Kurt behind. Convinced them to come with them where it was safe, and the government would protect them until they could return to their homes. Carole barely had the power to make Burt to keep going, get the rest of the kids safe, and then go back for Kurt. He knew she had her own son in mind as she spoke, so he couldn’t be angry with her. They were being pulled in different directions on this. And a rescue mission into Westerville would take more than one man with a heart condition.
“Oh, my God!” Tina squealed.
Burt turned towards the kids, crowding around her and her phone. He hoped they weren’t watching more YouTube videos of the infected stripping the flesh off of other people. It was hard enough to get them to sleep as it was. With a sigh, he walked over to her and Santana’s fathers, who were watching a new batch of people coming in.
“Hey, Burt.” Theo Lopez crossed his arms, looking about as uncomfortable as Burt felt. He might have been concerned about their safety, or he might just have been unhappy to see so many poor people crowding into their space. There weren’t enough cots, let alone enough food or water, as it was.
“I don’t know how you guys are feelin’ about this, but... We gotta get out of here.” Burt kept his voice low.
Tina’s father Ken narrowed his eyes. “It was your idea to get out of Lima.”
“I know. And I still don’t know if that was smart. Maybe they stopped it at the Indiana border...” Burt put his hands on his hips and shook his head. “But there are way too many people in here, and I don’t see ‘em checkin’ anybody for the virus. Do you? There’s a couple of kids over that way-” He jerked his head in their direction. “-and they’ve got a killer fever. I talked to their dad. We don’t know how this thing spreads, and we could be in danger here.”
Ken let out a long breath. “And if there are infected in here, it would be difficult to get out.”
“I’m not familiar with how the virus presents,” Theo said. “I could check out the kids, though. See if it looks like anything I’ve seen. When I left the hospital, fever was one of the signs we were to look for in preventing another outbreak. Fever, chills, aching bones, bloodshot eyes.”
“I’d appreciate it,” Burt said. “I don’t think my soul could rest easy if I brought these kids here and it turns into a death trap.”
“Keep it quiet,” Ken suggested. “If people start getting scared, they might panic. Kids could get trampled. We could get separated.”
Theo nodded and moved discretely toward the group Burt had indicated before. Burt watched for a moment, then went to Carole, who was turning the knob on a small television set. She looked to him and wiped the tears off her cheek.
“Hey, honey.”
He grabbed her shoulders and rubbed them with strong, quick bursts. “Looking for news?”
“I thought... I don’t know. We’d hear something about another refugee center. Maybe Kurt would go there? Or maybe he’s gotten my note and he’s on his way back here...” She covered her eyes. “God, Burt. I’m so sorry. How could we have come here without him?”
“He’s probably better off at this point.” He leaned forward. “Don’t say anything, but we’re about to move on. Maybe we can slip back into Westerville and find him.”
“Maybe.”
He sat next to her and circled his arms around her shoulders. “We’ll find him. I can’t think of the alternative. I just can’t... My head just can’t go there.”
“I keep wondering... If we hadn’t waited, if I’d left my shift and pulled Finn out of school, and we’d just gotten out of there when you called-”
“The news only reported the outbreak in Indiana. How could anyone guess that it was here already?”
“It’s so hard not to be with him. So hard to think about him out there with those crazed, infected people...” She sighed. “Well, obviously, you know how I feel.”
“He’s not alone. He’s with Blaine. They won’t separate from each other at a time like this.” Burt bowed his head and lifted his cap off his head, then held it in his hands in front of him.
Burt had some tough times in his life. Rough childhood, asshole of a father, more times without than with the basics he and his siblings needed, but thinking about that meant nothing at all to him. Not once he’d gotten his little family together. Him and Lizzie and Kurt. That’s all that had ever mattered. Losing her had ripped away a part of himself, and then there was just him and Kurt for a good while. Until he and Carole had hit it off and doubled the size of their tight little family.
His first priority had been to get his family safe. Of course. And at no point did it occur to him as they were doin’ the skedaddle from Lima that they might not be able to pick up Kurt and Blaine and have their family together, like they should be.
He couldn’t pretend that he wasn’t holding it together by a thread right now, living on pretend and not even daring to hope. Because hoping would mean considering that Kurt might be infected or dead.
Carole rubbed the back of his neck and leaned against him.
Theo came up behind them a moment later. He had a cloth wrapped around his hand, and he looked annoyed. “Those kids don’t have a fever. If anything, they’re clammy. And one of the little brats bit me.”
“Bit you?” Carole raised a brow and looked to Burt.
“They’re just ill-behaved.” Theo sighed and looked down on them. “This isn’t an ideal location, but it’s secure. I’m keeping my family here. You can do what you will.”
Burt smacked his hat against the table the little TV was sitting on. “I dunno. This might be where we part ways.”
“More room for us.” Theo turned and headed back to his wife and daughters.
“What are we going to do?” Carole whispered. “I don’t like the look of that bite.”
“Those kids had a fever yesterday.” Burt reposition his cap on his head. “Get Finn. I’ll talk to Ken and Lisa. He’s already not thrilled with the number of people here. We’ll take whoever’ll come with us.”
***
The traffic out of the city was beyond terrifying. Burt rubbed his forehead and looked around at the other people in their cars, just as frustrated with the traffic, just as frightened and impatient.
“Please, dear God, let this’ve been the right choice this time,” he muttered.
Carole touched his arm and squeezed. In the backseat, Finn sat with their things and was constantly texting his friends in the other cars. The Cohen-Changs and Brittany’s mother Anna had come with them, but the rest had stayed behind. The Abrams had been worried that they wouldn’t be able to protect Artie if they had to stay on the road, and Puck had wanted to come with them, but his mother had refused to leave, and he was determined to stay with Lauren and protect Artie and his little sister. The Lopezes were going nowhere. Theo had made up his mind.
Which was just as well, since by the time they’d left, he’d been sweating profusely. He’d said that he wasn’t infected, but Carole thought otherwise.
“People are dying to get out of here,” Finn said. He looked up then and his eyes went wide as he realized what he’d just said.
Burt made an amused noise deep in his throat. “Got anything good on your phone?”
“Mike’s on the road coming from Lima to meet with us,” Finn said. “And Santana stowed away with Brittany and her mom. I don’t think their parents know yet.”
Burt pressed his lips together. “I hate to say it, but that may have saved her life. Did her sister come with?”
“I’m asking... No. Lupe wouldn’t go, but she promised not to tell. Santana says she couldn’t let Brittany out into the world alone like this. Geez, like we’re not all here for her.”
“During a crisis, it’s hard to let someone you care about out of your sight.” Carole leaned against her hand.
The car was quiet for an uncomfortably long moment.
“Are we gonna stop by Westerville?” Finn asked.
“We’ll try,” Burt said. “We’ll try to get through.”
“Do you think he’s...?”
Burt felt that they were both looking to him in that moment. Looking for a grounding that he didn’t have.
“Kurt’s not stupid. He’s smarter’n I am. Westerville isn’t safe, and he won’t stay there any longer than he has to,” Burt answered finally.
***
Once they’d managed to get back on the highway, there was some kind of upset in one of the other cars, and the whole caravan pulled to the side of the road. The parents convened together, with the kids by the cars, and Lisa spoke first.
“Tina just got a message from Artie,” she said quietly. “There are people getting sick at the stadium, and now they’re not letting anyone leave.”
“We got out just in time,” Carole said. She swallowed and looked over to where the kids were crowding around Brittany as she cried. “I feel so bad for the ones who are stuck there.”
“There’s nothing we can do. We barely got out.” Burt ran a hand over his mouth.
“Look...” The wind lifted Lisa’s silky black hair around her head. “We have the outbreaks coming at us from either side. It’s spreading fast already, and because people can travel quickly before others recognize that they’re sick, it’s going to spread far, too.”
“Lisa thinks we need to head north or south, and quick,” Ken said. “Pick a direction, because we’re going to run out of options quite rapidly. The CDC isn’t going to catch up to this before it becomes dire.”
“It’s already dire,” Anna said. “Theo has it. He’s going to be dead within the day. Mike told Tina that people are getting infected in Lima, and I can’t contact my husband or anyone else there. I have to get my little girl out of here!”
“Okay. Then I’d say... North. Westerville’s that way anyway,” Burt said.
Ken exchanged a look with Lisa, then said gently. “What are the chances that he’s even there? Wouldn’t he have gotten out by now?”
“Two days isn’t a lot when you gotta hide all the time,” Burt argued. “They might’ve tried to get their friends from Dalton, or find Blaine’s family-”
“C’mon, Burt,” Lisa said.
“Or maybe they’re trapped somewhere. We don’t know!”
“You’ve been the most practical person since this nightmare started,” she said. “But I know how hard it is for you to let him go. We can’t get into Westerville. The roads are blocked.”
“Don’t you think the police have better things to do than block the road right now, though? We can find another route! Maybe we could... If we went in together...” Burt threw his hands up. “If I have to, I’ll send Finn and Carole with you and just go in there and get him-”
“Burt!” Carole admonished. “Are you kidding me with this? You have a heart condition. Kurt would kill you. He would have your head on a platter. You can’t go in there alone!”
Burt scowled and looked down.
“If it were my Tina, I’d feel the same way,” Ken said. “And I’d still be wrong. Your family needs you, Burt. All those kids do.”
“And Kurt wouldn’t want you risking yourself,” Lisa said. “Especially when he’s probably not even there.”
Burt couldn’t find anything to say. It wouldn’t be as much of a risk, if they’d go in there together. He could definitely get the kids to come with him, but there was no rationalizing offering up one kid for another.
They were just trying not to say what everyone was thinking. That Kurt... Kurt couldn’t be saved because...
“We can keep an eye out for him on the road,” Anna suggested. “We may run into him on the way.”
“Maybe.” Burt nodded and walked back over to the cars.
Carole stayed with the group for a minute, then followed him to the car. “North it is. What do you think?”
“I dunno what to think. You know... Kurt’s my world. If we leave him, my world is over. How can I leave ‘im? What if he’s hurt, or trapped? What if he needs us? What if he needs his dad? He’s just a kid, Carole. No matter how damn smart he is!”
Carole nodded and touched her eyes.
“I know you’re right... He wouldn’t want me goin’ in there on my own, but... He wouldn’t want me to abandon him either!”
“I wish I had some answers here, Burt. We can’t do it alone.” She covered her mouth and let out a shaky breath. “I don’t wanna leave him either, but I’m terrified and... even with Finn... Should we...? I wish I could make Ken come with us. I wish Puck and Lauren had come along. I’d trust them to help you two in there. I don’t want to say it, but no one else will. I’ve been watching the news for two days, and I just don’t see how anyone could’ve made it out of there alive, but if he did... I-I don’t what to do.”
Burt pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a heavy sigh. “Can you, um... Can you talk to Finn? Tell him where we’re going. And... Heh. If he has any answers, I’d be happy to have ‘em.”
Burt smoothed his hand under his cap then pulled it down snuggly over his head. He walked around to the back of their car and opened up the trunk. There among the other bags was a smaller one with a smattering of rhinestones along the side. He opened it up, pulled out a small picture frame, and ran his fingertips along the faces of his late wife and child.
When Carole returned, he gave her the keys and sat in the front seat, setting the picture of Lizzie and Kurt up on the cup holder. Finn started to say something, then he made a noise and threw himself back against the seat.
Burt looked out the window as they pulled out, one by one, heading down the highway, and for the first time in a long time, the first time since he’d put his eight year old to bed after losing his mother, he put his hand over his mouth and tears rolled down his cheeks.
He lifted his eyes when Finn touched his hand, and then Carole’s rested on top.
“I am gonna come back for him. When we figure out what’s going on and where’s safe,” he said. “I’m comin’ back for him and getting him outta here!”
“I know, honey,” Carole said.
Burt nodded and looked out the window once again. He tilted his head to the side as he saw... The image flashed by. They were going sixty-five miles per hour, after all. But it had looked like a person with half of his face torn off, just walking along as though nothing had happened. What kind of virus could do something like that?
In the reality where he’d just somehow been convinced not to tear through the streets looking for his son, all he had were these two people, the family Kurt had found for him. For them both. Maybe he’d been convinced because of these two people and how they’d come into his life. They were the only family he had left, if he was thinking with his rational mind. Carole was right. They’d both seen the news about how bad it had gotten in Westerville. No one was getting out of that place. As one last ditch, he called the boys’ phones again. One last hope. One last try for a sign to tell him he was making the worst decision of his life, and he should take his family back to Westerville, with or without the others.
But Blaine’s phone didn't pick up, and Kurt’s was dead.
Next Part: Consumerism is Dead
Pair: Klaine, Burt/Carole
Word Count: ~3175
Summary: It’s the zombie apocalypse! Ten weeks ago back at the Columbus shelter.
The road so far...
The Conception of Hope -> Human Kindness -> No Home Left to Run From -> Chasing Ghosts -> Water Break -> Unsafe -> Only Us
And now…
Ten Weeks Ago
As Burt’s eyes scanned over the enormous indoor stadium, which was filling with more and more people every hour, his chest began to swell with anxiety, and he realized he may have made a horrible mistake.
“Not good. This is nooot good.”
Two days ago, Burt had rounded up his family within a few hours of hearing reports of some kinda awful viral outbreak in Indiana. It hardly sounded real, but the stuff Carole had heard from her coworkers at the hospital was even worse than what they’d had on the news that day, so he told Finn to get whatever friends of his he could to meet with him after school and headed out. By the time they were all on the road, the kids were getting the news on their phones that people near the Indiana boarder should head to Columbus for their own safety.
In the beginning, there had been every intention of swinging by Westerville to pick up Kurt. He’d cut out of school early to visit Blaine (Finn had spilled once Burt started asking when Kurt would get home) and apparently the boys were making a day of it. First Kurt hadn’t answered his phone, and Blaine didn’t pick up either, but Burt had to keep it together and just drive. When they reached the turnoff, they found the road blocked by two police cars and a row of wooden barricades.
Turned out there was another outbreak in Westerville.
The parents had banded together and convinced their kids to come along despite protests that they couldn’t leave Kurt behind. Convinced them to come with them where it was safe, and the government would protect them until they could return to their homes. Carole barely had the power to make Burt to keep going, get the rest of the kids safe, and then go back for Kurt. He knew she had her own son in mind as she spoke, so he couldn’t be angry with her. They were being pulled in different directions on this. And a rescue mission into Westerville would take more than one man with a heart condition.
“Oh, my God!” Tina squealed.
Burt turned towards the kids, crowding around her and her phone. He hoped they weren’t watching more YouTube videos of the infected stripping the flesh off of other people. It was hard enough to get them to sleep as it was. With a sigh, he walked over to her and Santana’s fathers, who were watching a new batch of people coming in.
“Hey, Burt.” Theo Lopez crossed his arms, looking about as uncomfortable as Burt felt. He might have been concerned about their safety, or he might just have been unhappy to see so many poor people crowding into their space. There weren’t enough cots, let alone enough food or water, as it was.
“I don’t know how you guys are feelin’ about this, but... We gotta get out of here.” Burt kept his voice low.
Tina’s father Ken narrowed his eyes. “It was your idea to get out of Lima.”
“I know. And I still don’t know if that was smart. Maybe they stopped it at the Indiana border...” Burt put his hands on his hips and shook his head. “But there are way too many people in here, and I don’t see ‘em checkin’ anybody for the virus. Do you? There’s a couple of kids over that way-” He jerked his head in their direction. “-and they’ve got a killer fever. I talked to their dad. We don’t know how this thing spreads, and we could be in danger here.”
Ken let out a long breath. “And if there are infected in here, it would be difficult to get out.”
“I’m not familiar with how the virus presents,” Theo said. “I could check out the kids, though. See if it looks like anything I’ve seen. When I left the hospital, fever was one of the signs we were to look for in preventing another outbreak. Fever, chills, aching bones, bloodshot eyes.”
“I’d appreciate it,” Burt said. “I don’t think my soul could rest easy if I brought these kids here and it turns into a death trap.”
“Keep it quiet,” Ken suggested. “If people start getting scared, they might panic. Kids could get trampled. We could get separated.”
Theo nodded and moved discretely toward the group Burt had indicated before. Burt watched for a moment, then went to Carole, who was turning the knob on a small television set. She looked to him and wiped the tears off her cheek.
“Hey, honey.”
He grabbed her shoulders and rubbed them with strong, quick bursts. “Looking for news?”
“I thought... I don’t know. We’d hear something about another refugee center. Maybe Kurt would go there? Or maybe he’s gotten my note and he’s on his way back here...” She covered her eyes. “God, Burt. I’m so sorry. How could we have come here without him?”
“He’s probably better off at this point.” He leaned forward. “Don’t say anything, but we’re about to move on. Maybe we can slip back into Westerville and find him.”
“Maybe.”
He sat next to her and circled his arms around her shoulders. “We’ll find him. I can’t think of the alternative. I just can’t... My head just can’t go there.”
“I keep wondering... If we hadn’t waited, if I’d left my shift and pulled Finn out of school, and we’d just gotten out of there when you called-”
“The news only reported the outbreak in Indiana. How could anyone guess that it was here already?”
“It’s so hard not to be with him. So hard to think about him out there with those crazed, infected people...” She sighed. “Well, obviously, you know how I feel.”
“He’s not alone. He’s with Blaine. They won’t separate from each other at a time like this.” Burt bowed his head and lifted his cap off his head, then held it in his hands in front of him.
Burt had some tough times in his life. Rough childhood, asshole of a father, more times without than with the basics he and his siblings needed, but thinking about that meant nothing at all to him. Not once he’d gotten his little family together. Him and Lizzie and Kurt. That’s all that had ever mattered. Losing her had ripped away a part of himself, and then there was just him and Kurt for a good while. Until he and Carole had hit it off and doubled the size of their tight little family.
His first priority had been to get his family safe. Of course. And at no point did it occur to him as they were doin’ the skedaddle from Lima that they might not be able to pick up Kurt and Blaine and have their family together, like they should be.
He couldn’t pretend that he wasn’t holding it together by a thread right now, living on pretend and not even daring to hope. Because hoping would mean considering that Kurt might be infected or dead.
Carole rubbed the back of his neck and leaned against him.
Theo came up behind them a moment later. He had a cloth wrapped around his hand, and he looked annoyed. “Those kids don’t have a fever. If anything, they’re clammy. And one of the little brats bit me.”
“Bit you?” Carole raised a brow and looked to Burt.
“They’re just ill-behaved.” Theo sighed and looked down on them. “This isn’t an ideal location, but it’s secure. I’m keeping my family here. You can do what you will.”
Burt smacked his hat against the table the little TV was sitting on. “I dunno. This might be where we part ways.”
“More room for us.” Theo turned and headed back to his wife and daughters.
“What are we going to do?” Carole whispered. “I don’t like the look of that bite.”
“Those kids had a fever yesterday.” Burt reposition his cap on his head. “Get Finn. I’ll talk to Ken and Lisa. He’s already not thrilled with the number of people here. We’ll take whoever’ll come with us.”
***
The traffic out of the city was beyond terrifying. Burt rubbed his forehead and looked around at the other people in their cars, just as frustrated with the traffic, just as frightened and impatient.
“Please, dear God, let this’ve been the right choice this time,” he muttered.
Carole touched his arm and squeezed. In the backseat, Finn sat with their things and was constantly texting his friends in the other cars. The Cohen-Changs and Brittany’s mother Anna had come with them, but the rest had stayed behind. The Abrams had been worried that they wouldn’t be able to protect Artie if they had to stay on the road, and Puck had wanted to come with them, but his mother had refused to leave, and he was determined to stay with Lauren and protect Artie and his little sister. The Lopezes were going nowhere. Theo had made up his mind.
Which was just as well, since by the time they’d left, he’d been sweating profusely. He’d said that he wasn’t infected, but Carole thought otherwise.
“People are dying to get out of here,” Finn said. He looked up then and his eyes went wide as he realized what he’d just said.
Burt made an amused noise deep in his throat. “Got anything good on your phone?”
“Mike’s on the road coming from Lima to meet with us,” Finn said. “And Santana stowed away with Brittany and her mom. I don’t think their parents know yet.”
Burt pressed his lips together. “I hate to say it, but that may have saved her life. Did her sister come with?”
“I’m asking... No. Lupe wouldn’t go, but she promised not to tell. Santana says she couldn’t let Brittany out into the world alone like this. Geez, like we’re not all here for her.”
“During a crisis, it’s hard to let someone you care about out of your sight.” Carole leaned against her hand.
The car was quiet for an uncomfortably long moment.
“Are we gonna stop by Westerville?” Finn asked.
“We’ll try,” Burt said. “We’ll try to get through.”
“Do you think he’s...?”
Burt felt that they were both looking to him in that moment. Looking for a grounding that he didn’t have.
“Kurt’s not stupid. He’s smarter’n I am. Westerville isn’t safe, and he won’t stay there any longer than he has to,” Burt answered finally.
***
Once they’d managed to get back on the highway, there was some kind of upset in one of the other cars, and the whole caravan pulled to the side of the road. The parents convened together, with the kids by the cars, and Lisa spoke first.
“Tina just got a message from Artie,” she said quietly. “There are people getting sick at the stadium, and now they’re not letting anyone leave.”
“We got out just in time,” Carole said. She swallowed and looked over to where the kids were crowding around Brittany as she cried. “I feel so bad for the ones who are stuck there.”
“There’s nothing we can do. We barely got out.” Burt ran a hand over his mouth.
“Look...” The wind lifted Lisa’s silky black hair around her head. “We have the outbreaks coming at us from either side. It’s spreading fast already, and because people can travel quickly before others recognize that they’re sick, it’s going to spread far, too.”
“Lisa thinks we need to head north or south, and quick,” Ken said. “Pick a direction, because we’re going to run out of options quite rapidly. The CDC isn’t going to catch up to this before it becomes dire.”
“It’s already dire,” Anna said. “Theo has it. He’s going to be dead within the day. Mike told Tina that people are getting infected in Lima, and I can’t contact my husband or anyone else there. I have to get my little girl out of here!”
“Okay. Then I’d say... North. Westerville’s that way anyway,” Burt said.
Ken exchanged a look with Lisa, then said gently. “What are the chances that he’s even there? Wouldn’t he have gotten out by now?”
“Two days isn’t a lot when you gotta hide all the time,” Burt argued. “They might’ve tried to get their friends from Dalton, or find Blaine’s family-”
“C’mon, Burt,” Lisa said.
“Or maybe they’re trapped somewhere. We don’t know!”
“You’ve been the most practical person since this nightmare started,” she said. “But I know how hard it is for you to let him go. We can’t get into Westerville. The roads are blocked.”
“Don’t you think the police have better things to do than block the road right now, though? We can find another route! Maybe we could... If we went in together...” Burt threw his hands up. “If I have to, I’ll send Finn and Carole with you and just go in there and get him-”
“Burt!” Carole admonished. “Are you kidding me with this? You have a heart condition. Kurt would kill you. He would have your head on a platter. You can’t go in there alone!”
Burt scowled and looked down.
“If it were my Tina, I’d feel the same way,” Ken said. “And I’d still be wrong. Your family needs you, Burt. All those kids do.”
“And Kurt wouldn’t want you risking yourself,” Lisa said. “Especially when he’s probably not even there.”
Burt couldn’t find anything to say. It wouldn’t be as much of a risk, if they’d go in there together. He could definitely get the kids to come with him, but there was no rationalizing offering up one kid for another.
They were just trying not to say what everyone was thinking. That Kurt... Kurt couldn’t be saved because...
“We can keep an eye out for him on the road,” Anna suggested. “We may run into him on the way.”
“Maybe.” Burt nodded and walked back over to the cars.
Carole stayed with the group for a minute, then followed him to the car. “North it is. What do you think?”
“I dunno what to think. You know... Kurt’s my world. If we leave him, my world is over. How can I leave ‘im? What if he’s hurt, or trapped? What if he needs us? What if he needs his dad? He’s just a kid, Carole. No matter how damn smart he is!”
Carole nodded and touched her eyes.
“I know you’re right... He wouldn’t want me goin’ in there on my own, but... He wouldn’t want me to abandon him either!”
“I wish I had some answers here, Burt. We can’t do it alone.” She covered her mouth and let out a shaky breath. “I don’t wanna leave him either, but I’m terrified and... even with Finn... Should we...? I wish I could make Ken come with us. I wish Puck and Lauren had come along. I’d trust them to help you two in there. I don’t want to say it, but no one else will. I’ve been watching the news for two days, and I just don’t see how anyone could’ve made it out of there alive, but if he did... I-I don’t what to do.”
Burt pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a heavy sigh. “Can you, um... Can you talk to Finn? Tell him where we’re going. And... Heh. If he has any answers, I’d be happy to have ‘em.”
Burt smoothed his hand under his cap then pulled it down snuggly over his head. He walked around to the back of their car and opened up the trunk. There among the other bags was a smaller one with a smattering of rhinestones along the side. He opened it up, pulled out a small picture frame, and ran his fingertips along the faces of his late wife and child.
When Carole returned, he gave her the keys and sat in the front seat, setting the picture of Lizzie and Kurt up on the cup holder. Finn started to say something, then he made a noise and threw himself back against the seat.
Burt looked out the window as they pulled out, one by one, heading down the highway, and for the first time in a long time, the first time since he’d put his eight year old to bed after losing his mother, he put his hand over his mouth and tears rolled down his cheeks.
He lifted his eyes when Finn touched his hand, and then Carole’s rested on top.
“I am gonna come back for him. When we figure out what’s going on and where’s safe,” he said. “I’m comin’ back for him and getting him outta here!”
“I know, honey,” Carole said.
Burt nodded and looked out the window once again. He tilted his head to the side as he saw... The image flashed by. They were going sixty-five miles per hour, after all. But it had looked like a person with half of his face torn off, just walking along as though nothing had happened. What kind of virus could do something like that?
In the reality where he’d just somehow been convinced not to tear through the streets looking for his son, all he had were these two people, the family Kurt had found for him. For them both. Maybe he’d been convinced because of these two people and how they’d come into his life. They were the only family he had left, if he was thinking with his rational mind. Carole was right. They’d both seen the news about how bad it had gotten in Westerville. No one was getting out of that place. As one last ditch, he called the boys’ phones again. One last hope. One last try for a sign to tell him he was making the worst decision of his life, and he should take his family back to Westerville, with or without the others.
But Blaine’s phone didn't pick up, and Kurt’s was dead.
Next Part: Consumerism is Dead