Right Place, Wrong Time. Part 1/?
Title: Right Place, Wrong Time. Part 1/?
Author: Scar Bandit
Pairings: Kurt/Puck
Rating NC-17
Warnings: slash, m/m. None others yet. Although if you see something I should have added PLEASE TELL ME.
Spoilers: maybe season 2?
Genre: Hurt/Comfort
Word count: 2,100/13k+
Disclaimer: Duh. I wish.
Puck lay back against the cool slide in the playground, watching the shadow of the trees blow against the stars above him during the first weekend of Spring Break. Pulling deeply on his cigarette, he let the smoke slowly rise above him, blurring the trees above him for a moment before another breeze cleared the air and the stars shown above him once again. Closing his eyes briefly, Puck could still hear his ma’s voice ringing in his head. Deadbeat. Just like your dad. Never gonna amount to anything. Crushing the cigarette out against the gravel of the playground, Puck stood and walked over to the path through the woods, hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans, shoulders hunched against the faint chill. Kicking at the leaves that swirled at his feet, Puck wandered through the woods, listening to the noises of the night.
He didn’t understand why his ma was so pissed all the sudden. It’s not like nobody saw this coming. He had been getting shit grades since forever. What the fuck did she think he was going to do after graduation? Fucking go to Harvard and become a surgeon? So he didn’t apply to any colleges last fall. Did she really think he was going to get into any? And even if he did, how the fuck was he supposed to pay for that? His pool business kept him in smokes and beer; he didn’t have a fucking college fund like Hummel did or a scholarship lined up for ball like Finn. He figured he would go to community college and then maybe a trade school. He knew he wasn’t book smart. But that didn’t make him a deadbeat.
Following the path out of the woods, Puck turned onto the residential street, heading back toward his house. As he neared the next corner, the faint smell of smoke tickled the back of his throat. Puck paused, looking around. It was after 1:00 AM, there shouldn’t be anyone out burning this late at night. Besides, last he had heard, the burn ban hadn’t been lifted, so he wouldn’t have thought anyone was burning. Turning a slow circle, Puck scanned the night sky, trying to determine the source of the smoke. Spotting a blur of smoke to the west, Puck began to walk in that direction. As he approached the next crossroad, Puck could see a faint orange tint above the rooflines. Starting to jog, Puck pulled his phone out of his pocket, continuing to pick up speed as flames appeared above the houses.
Dialing 9-1-1, Puck skidded to a stop in front of the house on fire.
“911, please state your emergency.”
“Fuck. Yeah. I need to report a fire.” Puck closed his eyes briefly. He knew this house. He had nailed lawn furniture to the roof of this house. “555 Perching Bird. Please hurry.” Dropping the phone into his pocket, Puck ran to the front door. Slamming his foot into the doorframe, he shouldered the door open and immediately pulled his arms up over his face. The living room was filled with smoke and he could see flames coming from the kitchen. Running up the stairs, Puck banged on Finn’s door before pushing it open, turning on the light while shouting. “Finn! Get your ass out of bed! Come on, dude. Get up.” Grabbing a sweatshirt and throwing it at Finn’s head, Puck ran out of his room and turned to the master bedroom. Banging on the door, he threw it open and turned on the light before barging into Burt and Carole’s room. Carole sat up in bed, the bed sheet pulled up to her chin.
“What the hell?” Burt stood up and advanced on Puck.
“Mr. Hummel. Mrs. H. You need to get up. There’s a fire in the kitchen.”
Burt spun and grabbed Carole. “Carole, go wake up Finn, get downstairs and call the fire department. I need to get Kurt!” Giving Carole a small push toward the door, Burt tried to shoulder past Puck.
“Stop! I already woke Finn and called 911. I’ll go down and get Hum - I mean Kurt. I’m faster.” With that, Puck spun and ran out the door and stumbled into Finn, who was standing in the hallway with a lost look on his face.
“Puck? What are you doing here?” Finn had a look like a little boy who was trying to figure out how to tie his shoe for the first time. “What’s going on?” Puck just grabbed his arm and shoved him down the stairs and toward the door. Grabbing Carole’s hand, he pushed her down ahead of him, pulling off his sweatshirt and throwing it in her arms to cover her nightgown. Turning back toward the living room, Puck saw the flames now fully consumed the kitchen and had begun to spread to the rest of the house. The ceiling was fully engulfed, flames licking across and down the opposing wall. The smoke was now so thick that Puck immediately began coughing before he pulled his wife beater off and held it to his nose and mouth.
Pushing through the heat and smoke, Puck reached the kitchen and pulled open the door leading to the basement. He frantically searched for a light switch before giving up and heading down the dark staircase. Running downstairs, Puck was able to take a deep breath of clean air, which triggered further coughing. Tripping in the dark, Puck stumbled down the final step, landing badly on his ankle and falling to his knees. As a brief cry escaped his lips, a light suddenly turned on, bathing the room in soft yellow light. Kurt sat up in his bed. “Puck? What are…? What…?”
Puck grabbed Kurt’s hand. “Fire. Kitchen. Come on!” Pulling Kurt from his bed, Puck pushed him ahead and toward the stairs. Kurt’s eyes immediately widened as he took in the smoke pouring into the basement from above.
“No, wait! Window. Puck, come on!” Kurt spun and ran toward the far side of the room, pointing to a small window near the ceiling. Situated over seven feet above the ground, it was less than a foot high and about a foot and a half across. Grabbing a book, Puck shoved past Kurt and threw the book at the window, trying to break the glass. The book bounced off the sill and landed at Puck’s feet.
“Fuck!” Puck screamed. Glancing back toward the stairwell, Puck saw that the flames were now descending into the basement. Reaching up to the sill, Puck pulled himself up and slammed his fist into the window, shattering the glass. Dropping back to the floor for a moment, Puck reached back up and pulled himself up again, using his forearm to clear out the remaining glass. “Hummel! Get over here!” Distantly, Puck could hear the sirens of the fire truck moving closer. As Kurt approached, Puck squatted down. “Climb up. Get your ass out this window.”
Kurt paused. “What about you? You won’t be able to make it. It’s too high!”
Puck grabbed Kurt’s arm and tugged him near the wall. “Get the fuck up there Kurt. Come ON!” Kurt stepped up on Puck’s leg before reaching up and grabbing the window sill. Puck reached up and pushed Kurt toward the window, grunting when Kurt kicked the side of his head as he wiggled out the window. Finally pulling himself completely out the window and onto the ground be the house, Kurt immediately spun and reached his hand back in, trying to grab Puck’s hand.
“Puck! Grab my hand!” Kurt spun and shouted toward the street. “HERE! Over here! Help me!” Turning back, Kurt crouched back by the window and reached in again. “Puck. Grab my hand! We can get you out of there!”
Straining, Kurt could see Puck coughing while looking up at him. “Hummel. I can’t fit out that window. I gotta go back out the front. I’ll be right out!” With that, Kurt watched helplessly as Puck turned and rushed toward the stairs back up to the main floor.
“Noooooo!” Kurt screamed and began kicking when arms wrapped around him from behind.
“Come on kid, let’s go. We gotta get you to the hospital.” The strong hands pulled Kurt toward the front of the house. As they rounded the corner, Burt ran up to Kurt and enveloped him in a hug. Kurt saw a fireman step back and turn toward his radio clipped to his shoulder.
“Kurt! Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Burt grabbed Kurt’s head between his hands and looked in his eyes. “Tell me if you’re hurt.”
Kurt pulled his head out of his father’s hands. “I’m fine. Puck! Where’s Puck? Dad, he helped me get out but then he couldn’t get out and I don’t know where he is and we have to go back and get him. Oh my god. Dad! We have to help him!” With a final cry, Kurt turned and began to run back toward the house, trying to get to the front door.
“Wait! Stop! Kid! You can’t go in there!” The fireman reached out and grabbed Kurt before he could get further than a few steps. “We’ve got guys going in to get your friend. Is there anyone else in the house?” Kurt shook his head frantically, eyes darting between his dad and the fireman. “Okay. Go see the EMTs at the ambulance. Let us do our job.”
Burt wrapped his arm around Kurt and led him across the street to the ambulance where Finn sat wrapped in a blanket and Carole hovered nearby, wearing Puck’s sweatshirt over her nightgown. An EMT stood before Finn, putting an oxygen mask on his face and taking his blood pressure. Kurt sat on the curb near the ambulance, watching with worried eyes as firemen ran across the lawn, while others sprayed water toward the flames bursting through the upstairs windows. Another fireman shouted into a radio as three men donned face masks and oxygen tanks. The three men began walking toward the house when suddenly there was an explosion, throwing the three men to the ground.
Kurt screamed as the Navigator’s windows burst with the heat blast and the car alarm began to sound, adding to the chaos. The three men stumbled to their feet before heading in, ducking beneath the flames and smoke as they disappeared into the house. Suddenly another EMT was standing in front of Kurt’s face, shining a pin light into each of his eyes. Jerking back, Kurt tried to lean around the EMT, watching the front of the house. “Kurt. I need you to focus on me here, Kurt. Can you do that for me?” Kurt felt his eyes drift over toward the house again before focusing back on the EMT and nodding slightly. As the EMT began to take his vitals, there was suddenly shouting from the front of the house.
One of the firemen stepped out of the house, carrying Puck in his arms. A second fireman stepped out and ripped off his mask before shouting “Got a live one here. Need some help!” The EMT helping Kurt grabbed a box from just inside the ambulance and ran over toward Puck’s prone body. Kurt watched as the firemen rolled him onto his back and the EMT pushed his stethoscope into his ears before bending over Puck. Kurt continued to watch, numb, as he shook his head and began to do chest compressions. After a count of five, the EMT leaned over and blew a breath into Puck’s mouth before leaning over and listening again. Repeating the process three more times, Kurt saw his shoulders relax after listening the last time. Nodding, he stood up and Kurt noticed that the second EMT had arrived with a gurney. Looking over, Kurt saw that Finn had moved to the side, leaving the back of the ambulance gaping open. Kurt moved his head back and saw the firemen place Puck on the gurney and the EMTs raise the bed up and begin pushing it towards the ambulance. Silence surrounded Kurt as he watched in a daze as the EMTs lined the gurney up with the back and pushed it in, wheels collapsing beneath it. Kurt slowly looked back at the house and watched as the firemen continued to run across the yard, spraying water at the flames. Time seemed to slow down as Kurt watched the flames continue to grow, smoke pouring out into the night. Kurt watched the flames licking at the sky, the smoke rising to obscure the stars from his view.