redbullandcupcakebatter:

Burt rubbed the back of his neck. “Probably ought to go to bed soon,” he reminded Carole.

She curled up closer, stretching her legs out on the couch. “The movie’s almost over,” she said, nestling her head on his shoulder. Burt smiled, dropping a kiss on her head.

Something clattered on the stairs and he stood up. “You hear that?” he said.

“Finn’s probably just running into things again,” Carole said. “He’s always clumsy when he wakes up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom.”

“No, no, it sounded like…” Burt paused. “It might’ve been Finn. I don’t know.”

He started to settle back into the couch, but he heard slow, heavy footsteps behind him. “God, if Finn’s getting another midnight snack…” Carole sighed. “He’s going to eat us out of house and home.”

“I’ll go see,” Burt said. He stood up and turned to see his son wandering through the living room. “Kurt?”

“…I hafta…wanna go home,” Kurt mumbled.

Burt approached him cautiously. “Kurt? Kiddo, you are home,” he said. “What’s wrong?”

Kurt stared blankly at the far wall. “I’m gonna…go…downstairs,” he slurred. “Call Blaine.”

Carole sat up. “Burt, is he sleepwalking?” she whispered.

Burt nodded, a lump growing in his throat. Kurt had a bad habit of sleepwalking when he was stressed out about something. He hadn’t done it in months. “Kurt, you’re okay,” he said, keeping his voice soft and calm. “Let’s get you back to bed.”

To his growing horror, Kurt began to cry. “Blaine,” he said plaintively. “Wanna…go home.”

“He’s worried about the surgery,” Carole murmured. “Poor baby.”

Burt skirted closer and gingerly pulled Kurt into a hug. “It’s okay, bud,” he soothed, rubbing Kurt’s back. Kurt clung to him, his hands tangling in his shirtsleeves. “It’s okay, Blaine’s fine. Remember? His surgery was this morning. He did just fine. His parents said you could visit tomorrow after school as long as he’s doing okay. Remember?”

But Kurt just clung to him, his whole body stiff, his hands digging into Burt’s shoulders with a viselike grip, tears making slow tracks down his pale cheeks. Burt sighed. “Let’s get you back to bed, kiddo,” he said softly.

He guided Kurt up the stairs and back to his room. His bedroom was unusually cluttered, the floor scattered with various clothing items. That wasn’t too much of a surprise- Kurt had been known to organize his closet while he was sleepwalking, or try to do his homework, or one time even walk all the way down the street to the park.

Burt eased Kurt down to sit on the edge of the bed. “There you go,” he murmured, lifting Kurt’s long legs down. “There you go, buddy.”

Kurt still looked upset, his face screwed up and his blue eyes dazed. Burt tucked him in snugly and kissed his forehead. “Go to sleep, little boy,” he said softly. “Everything’s gonna be okay. I promise.”

He sat beside Kurt’s bed for a while, waiting for his eyes to ease closed. Eventually Kurt settled down, sinking into the pillow as his mouth parted in the tiniest of snores, but Burt stayed a little while longer, just to ease his own troubled mind.