I own nothing...'cept way too many Mac eye-shadow pots.
You'll Never Walk Alone
by-andthenIfound5dollars
Warnings/tags: Klaine, Daddies/Klaine, Canon Divergence, Child Abandonment, Adoption, Future Fic, Original Characters.
A/N: A whole lot can change in just one year…a new house, a new school, a new baby? Just think of what can change in almost 10 years!? One thing is for sure–Kurt, Blaine, and their children will never take this walk through life alone. They will always have each other, and the family they surround themselves with.
Walk on, walk on…with hope in your heart…and you'll never walk alone. You'll never walk alone.-Carousel
The summer after Liam turned two years old, and Sophie was just months away from turning seven, a lot of things changed all at once.
After only two years in their condo on the Upper West Side, they received notice that their building was going Co-op. After several lengthy conversations, both Kurt and Blaine agreed that if they were going to go through the process of obtaining a mortgage and owning...they wanted a house. They wanted something bigger.
They both agreed to consider all possibilities...but in the end, a traditional Manhattan-style townhouse on the East Side of 71st Street was the winner, and they entered escrow in July.
Their townhouse on East 71st Street was what their realtor called a classic Manhattan layout. The front door led into a grand foyer, and was called the "parlor floor." With a formal sitting room beyond the foyer, it was the least used space in the house...unless Kurt and Blaine were entertaining.
The first floor, or the garden level, was a flight of stairs below the foyer. The garden level housed their dining room, kitchen, and common family room, with the stone-walled off garden area. The kids loved the outdoor play space, their dads loved the security of the high stone wall. Going upstairs from the foyer would lead first onto the master floor. Kurt and Blaine's bedroom was there, along with their personal study, master bathroom, and a small personal terrace. The fourth floor held two guest bedrooms and accompanying baths, and the fifth floor was where Sophie and Liam's bedroom and bathrooms were. Each floor connected to a laundry chute, as well as an intercom system that was connected to the state-of-the-art security system Blaine insisted on.
Their first night in their new home, Kurt and Blaine toasted with glasses of champagne, both of them proud beyond words that the New York life they had dreamed about as teenagers was finally coming true.
"It took a lot of work," Kurt said as he clinked his glass against Blaine's. They were sitting side by side on the very last step of the staircase in their new foyer...which Kurt insisted on calling 'the grand foyer'.
"And even more therapy sessions..." Blaine added with a wink. "But we did it."
"Yeah we did." Kurt leaned in to brush his lips against his husband's.
In the midst of trying to find a new place to live, finally finding and then renovating their new townhouse, their nanny, Grace, put in her two weeks notice. She'd been with them since Liam was a baby and everyone was sad to see her go, even more that she didn't seem to give a reason beyond needing to move on, which Kurt and Blaine understood, but the kids had a little bit of a harder time with.
Kurt and Blaine both knew that with the move, they would need someone full time. The kids had school and activities, their house was much larger, and when Blaine was faced with the possibility of giving away Liam's crib when he moved on to his toddler bed...he just couldn't part with it yet...and neither could Kurt, putting the lingering idea of just one more baby into both of their heads at the same time.
They hired Emma two weeks after officially moving into their new home in September. Emma was a wonderfully experienced house manager/live-in nanny whom Liam instantly fell in love with and Sophie adored from a distance, already feeling that, at seven, she was too old for a nanny. They quickly converted the media room in the basement into a small apartment, and everyone settled into a new routine.
xoxo
By Christmas, Kurt and Blaine started to seriously talk about having one more baby. The seeds having been planted months before, and neither of them could quite get the idea out of their heads. They were settled, they were happy, and they had more than enough love and space in their hearts and home for a fifth member of their family.
And three had always been the number they kept coming back to.
"You do realize though," Kurt started one night after the kids were in bed and they were sharing a bottle of wine in front of their Christmas tree in the living room, "That this baby and Sophie will be the same distance apart that you and Cooper are, maybe even more."
Blaine looked over and shrugged. "It'll still be different, with Liam in the middle and more than just the two of them," he explained as Kurt poured a little more wine into his glass for him. "Cooper and I were so similar, yet so far apart in age. I'm okay with the age difference with the new baby and Soph."
The decision to add one more baby to their family was as natural as deciding on their other two kids. It was however, a lot more of a lengthy process. This time around, they both really wanted to adopt.
For them, adoption had always been on the table. Ever since Blaine was a little kid, he'd known that his big brother was adopted, and it meant a great deal to him to carry on that tradition in his family with Kurt.
For Kurt, while the decision was a little less personal...it was just as important. Before he'd met Blaine, when he thought about his life, kids were always a part of the equation. And until they met Mel, and decided to go ahead with surrogacy, adoption was one of the big ways he envisioned himself having children. Adoption was something that was very important to his husband, that in and of itself made it very important to Kurt.
By the time Liam turned three in April; they had an adoption lawyer, had filled out all the paperwork, had put their names on a few lists, and even had a few meetings with prospective birth parents. Though nothing had worked out yet, both Kurt and Blaine were very hopeful...even daring to start putting a nursery together in one of the spare bedrooms.
xoxo
Liam's third birthday was a quiet affair, just family and a few close friends over for pizza and cake, with two of his friends from school.
Kurt spent the day baking a train-themed birthday cake with cupcake scenery, while Blaine and Sophie decorated their dining room with red and blue streamers, a big number 3 sign with a train on it, and big silver balloons spelling out his name.
"Trains, huh?" Carole asked, walking into the kitchen where Kurt and Sophie were decorating the cake and cupcakes.
Kurt turned his head and smiled.
"He's obsessed with them," he answered, helping his daughter pump frosting onto the cupcakes that had just finished cooling. "Okay honey, wash your hands then go upstairs and have Dad help you with your hair. Your dress is laying across your chair."
"Can I wear my new boots?" Sophie asked, stepping up on the stool and washing her hands at the sink.
"Sure." She skipped off, letting Carole pat her behind playfully as she passed.
"I think that's everything," Kurt mused, setting the piping bag down and wiping his hands on a towel. "Mel and Luke are bringing the pizza and I already cut all the vegetables for the pasta salad.
"I think I have enough for everyone," he said, counting the party favors he and Blaine had put together the night before. "It's the six of us, plus Rachel, Sam, and Nick, Mel and Luke, then Emma is coming and bringing her boyfriend Ted." Kurt ticked people off on his fingers and made sure everything was set out on the table in the dining room.
"And two little kids from his class, I'm not sure if any parents will stay..." he trailed off, using his hand to smooth down the t-shirt from Blaine's latest play that he had thrown on earlier, knowing he would be baking and decorating most of the day.
"No Lena?" Carole asked.
"No Lena," Kurt confirmed, walking back into the kitchen and grabbed a box of candles from the drawer. "She misread the dates and is in Finland for the week, and Andrew is still recovering from his gallbladder surgery. Cooper stayed with him after Blaine left last week."
Carole nodded as Burt walked into the kitchen with Liam in his birthday outfit and thrown over his shoulder.
"Papa!" Liam cried, turning his head and leaning over for Kurt to take him.
"Hey there birthday boy," Kurt cooed taking Liam in his arms and kissing his temple. "Did you have fun at the zoo today?"
"We saw a monkey pooping!" Liam laughed, his eyes sparkling as he all but yelled the last word.
Kurt rolled his eyes and chuckled at his son as he kissed his temple again and set him on the floor. "I'm sure that was thrilling, son."
Carole laughed as she carried the crudite into the dining room.
"Papa, can I go play outside?" Liam asked as Kurt turned to the island to toss the pasta salad.
Kurt looked out the back doors before looking down at his son. "It's raining, bud."
Liam looked up at his Papa and shrugged. "So?"
It took everything inside of him not to start laughing. He was able to school his features and shake his head. "No playing outside, birthday boy." Liam visibly shrunk and hung his head. "Go play with your trucks, your friends from school will be here soon."
Liam crossed his arms but did as he was told and sulked into the family room. He pulled on the drawer of the coffee table that held his trucks and cars and took a few out. Carole and Kurt shared a smile and a look when she walked in from the dining room.
"I think that's everything," Kurt sighed, giving the island and counters one final wipe down before carrying the platter that held the cake and decorated cupcakes to the buffet next to the table in the dining room.
"I'm gonna run upstairs and change my shirt," he told Carole as Burt headed to the family room to play with Liam.
Blaine was helping Sophie buckle her boots when Kurt walked into their bedroom. "Those look great, honey," Kurt said, kissing the top of her head as he walked by.
"Thank you!" Sophie preened with a grin. "Can I play hostess in the foyer?" she asked, jumping up from where she had been sitting at Kurt's vanity.
Blaine laughed, but nodded. "Sure, I'll be down in a minute." He watched Sophie skip toward the staircase before walking into the closet and slipping his arms around his husband's waist. "How you doin' today, papa bear?" he asked, kissing the back of Kurt's neck.
Kurt chuckled before turning in his husband's arms and kissing him lightly on the mouth. "Falling apart at the seams, as usual," Kurt joked with a slight lift of his shoulder and playful wink. He adjusted Blaine's bowtie before smoothing his hands down the front of his button-up shirt. "I'm fine. Even with the past few weeks...getting emotional about our baby turning three has taken a back burner to the fact that he still seems to be obsessed with talking about poop."
Blaine laughed and grabbed his favorite topsiders from the shoe rack before following Kurt out of the closet. "Every year on their birthdays, I always think about what we were doing at that point during the day they were born."
Kurt started laughing as he spritzed a little cologne on before wrapping a scarf around his neck. "Oh god, remember when Liam was born, and Dr. Robbins was out of town when Mel went into labor?" he asked, as Blaine shook his head and laughed along with him.
"And she hated the on-call doctor! Was screaming at him to shut the hell up."
"Yeah she did," Kurt laughed at the memory one more time before they heard the doorbell ring and Sophie call that she had it. "Come on Daddy, lets go celebrate our poop-loving son's birthday."
xoxo
Only one of the moms had decided to stick around for the party, the other little boy was dropped off by his nanny and she promised to be back to pick him up in a few hours. Kurt felt bad for her, she had probably been looking forward to a few hours alone for a while.
The three boys ran around the family room and up and down the stairs most of the afternoon, with Blaine, Sam, and Burt chasing after them. They played with Liam's basket of trucks and action figures because they couldn't go outside and bugged Sophie just because they could. The pile of presents on the floor between the kitchen and the dining room grew bigger and bigger as more people walked through the door. Kurt had planned a few party games if the boys got bored, but they didn't seem to need them and were fine entertaining themselves. Sophie helped Kurt most of the evening, playing hostess and pretending she was an adult. Both her dads swore that she must have turned 16 at her last birthday, not 7.
"Alright," Kurt called to Rachel once the food had been served and he'd washed his hands again. "Hand my godson over to me, it's been ages since I got to hold him!"
Rachel smiled and stepped away from Mel and Carole who were admiring the barely four month old baby boy she was holding. "He's been tellin' me all morning he wants to see his Uncle Kurt."
Kurt laughed as she carefully laid Nick in his arms and he and Rachel sat down on the couch in the family room while the rest of the party went on in the dining room and kitchen.
"Nickolas Connery," Kurt sang. The baby whined and snorted out a small cry before fluttering his eyes back to sleep and Kurt shook his head while still smiling. "I think you may be in the running for cutest baby ever with Sophie and Liam."
Rachel nodded as she adjusted his little hat and rubbed her hand down Kurt's arm. "They are related to us, of course they are the cutest."
"Of course they are," Kurt scoffed, giving his friend a cheeky wink before they both started giggling at each other. Kurt looked down again and rocked Nick gently.
"We sure are tryin' hard to get you a friend, little guy," Kurt sighed.
"Sam told me that the adoption call you guys got a few weeks ago fell through," Rachel said sympathetically. She shook her head and sighed. "I'm so sorry I haven't been around. My life has mostly been bottles and diapers and catching any sleep I can, whenever I can. What happened?"
Kurt shook his head again as he balanced Nick in his arm and used his other hand to squeeze Rachel's arm. "Believe me, we understand completely."
Rachel nodded as Kurt took a deep breath and shrugged. "We got the call because an adoption fell through just a little bit before the baby was supposed to be born. We never got specifics but Linda, our lawyer, made it sound like it was a marital problem." Rachel nodded again as Kurt paused and shifted Nick in his arms a bit and patted his diaper covered bottom to soothe away his little whines. "Anyway, we met with the birth mom and she seemed to really like us, but then I guess she decided to keep the baby before we ever even got the call that she had picked us."
"Aww Kurt," Rachel cooed as she pouted her lips a bit and reached over to hold her baby son's hand in hers. "I'm sorry."
Kurt shrugged again as he gave Nick one more squeeze before handing him back over to his mommy. "Blaine and I talked about it and we agreed it wasn't meant to be, we were a little sad...but we're okay. Everyone told us it would probably be a long, hard road sometimes. We're okay with waiting for our baby."
Rachel smiled as Kurt held out his hand to help her stand up and she kissed his cheek before they walked back to the party.
After everyone had eaten their fill of pizza and pasta salad, Blaine and Sam took all four of the kids upstairs and made up a kind of kickball game with one of Liam's soft foam balls in the hallway between the foyer and the living room. Burt and Luke followed them up as well but just to watch.
Rachel and Mel were chatting as they cleared off the table while Nick snoozed in his carrier where his mom could keep an eye on him, and Julie and Kurt talked about the kids' school and how they felt about the boys' teacher.
Sam came down the stairs with Liam hanging upside down over his shoulder, the little boy giggling uncontrollably. "Did you order a birthday boy, sir?"
Kurt shook his head and took advantage of Liam's exposed belly to give him a little tickle before Sam let him down. "Come on, jellybelly," Kurt said, leading Liam to the head of the table where Mel and Carole had set his cake and were ready to light his three candles. Burt took over the flip video camera, and Sam took the digital camera that Blaine handed him, promising to take a bunch of pictures.
Mel lit his candles and Kurt and Blaine kneeled down on either side of him, while everyone started singing. Liam blushed like crazy, but smiled the whole time.
"Make a wish, baby," Blaine whispered as everyone finished singing.
Liam screwed up his little face, then took all three of his tries to get the three candles blown out. The room erupted in cheers. Kurt kissed the side of his head as the three of them looked at Sam and smiled for a picture. Blaine pulled Sophie over as well and had Sam take a few pictures of the four of them before he leaned down and kissed the top of Liam's head as well and Kurt started to cut the cake.
"Bud, do you want a piece of cake now, or do you wanna open your presents first?" Kurt asked Liam.
"PRESENTS!" Liam howled, jumping down from his chair.
"Honey, I'll finish cutting and serving the cake," Carole offered, walking over and taking the cake server from him. "You go over and be with Liam."
Liam was absolutely showered with new toys, clothes, books, and stickers. The biggest hit, was the weatherproof outdoor mechanical train set that Blaine and Kurt got for him. It was the last thing he opened because it was the biggest.
"Can we go put it together, now!?" Liam asked, jumping up and down.
"Not right now, jellybelly," Blaine explained. "It's too dark and still a little rainy. As long as it's nice tomorrow, we'll put it together after breakfast, okay?"
Liam pouted, but accepted the terms.
"Why don't you go give everyone a hug and tell them thank you one more time, then you can go play," Kurt pushed Liam gently in the direction of his grandparents and moaned as he lifted himself from the floor. "I may need to go to a yoga class this week, I'm getting too old to sit on the floor like that."
Blaine laughed and told him he didn't look a day over twenty as Liam walked around giving everyone hugs and flashing his thousand-watt smile.
"Hey, Kurt," Luke said as he walked up to him. "Mel and I have been thinking about investing in a townhouse, did you guys have to do a bunch of renovation when you moved in here?" he asked as Kurt grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and took a drink.
"Umm, mainly just cosmetically. We did renovate the media room into a tiny nanny apartment, though," he answered as Blaine walked over to them and nodded.
"And we changed the master floor a little, too," Blaine added.
"You did?" Mel asked from where she was sitting at the table, Sophie sitting in her lap as they shared a cupcake. "I don't remember that."
Kurt nodded. "Yeah, when we bought the house, the master bath was huge. It was basically the same size as Sophie and Liam's bedrooms with their closets and bathrooms. It was sooo nice, but it had all this underutilized space in it. We decided that instead of sacrificing one of the bedrooms, we would knock out our bathroom, remodel to make a slightly smaller sized bathroom and turn all that space into our shared office/studio."
"Oh wow, was it a huge undertaking?" Luke asked, but Blaine shook his head.
"About as much as you would expect. All the construction happened before we moved in."
"We had to sacrifice a little bit of closet space, but we gained a separate part of the house to work in."
"With a door, that closes," Blaine added. "You wanna come up and see? I can show you around if you'd like."
Luke nodded and followed Blaine up the stairs just as the doorbell rang and Grey's nanny came in to take him home.
Julie decided it was probably time to get Cobalt home as well, so Liam said goodbye to both of his friends as Kurt handed each of them a goodie bag with some little tinker toys and train themed party favors. After Grey and Cobalt left, Liam wandered into the family room and laid across his Grampy's lap while Burt and Sam watched the end of one the NCAA games, baby Nick sleeping peacefully in his dad's arms. Blaine and Luke joined them soon after while Kurt and Sophie entertained the rest of their guests at the table the rest of the evening.
xoxo
It was after eight by the time the game was over. Kurt carried a very worn out Liam upstairs to bed, Sophie following close behind. Sam and Rachel had left a while before with Nick, saying they needed to get him down. Rachel looked like she was about to pass out from exhaustion as well. Mel and Luke followed them soon after.
"I think I'm gonna hit the hay," Burt announced, standing up and stretching after the last buzzer had blown on the game they were watching. "I wanna spend some time with the kids before our flight home tomorrow, and I'm wiped."
Blaine stood up to say goodnight to both he and Carole. He sat back down on the couch and flipped channels for a few minutes, finally finding a rerun of some show he and Kurt had already watched. He hadn't even realized he'd fallen asleep, until he was shocked awake by Kurt gently slipping his leg over and straddling him.
"Mmm, hey you," he mumbled, reaching up and rubbing his hands up and down Kurt's thighs where they were bracketing his own.
"You fell asleep," Kurt murmured, leaning his head down to pepper kisses across Blaine's jaw and down the column of his neck.
"Mmmhmm, I did," Blaine all but groaned as his grip on Kurt's thighs and waist got tighter. "Kids asleep?"
"Well, Liam is. I told Sophie she could read in bed after her shower," he answered, nibbling gently on Blaine's ear lobe before sitting back just a touch. "Ready to head up?"
Blaine finally opened his eyes and smiled at his husband. "I'm ready if you are."
Kurt laughed at that. "You were the one falling asleep on the couch, silly."
Blaine chuckled and shrugged. "It's hard to argue with that logic."
Kurt continued to laugh as he climbed off and stood up, holding his hand out for Blaine to take. "Come on, let's go to bed. We can be quiet."
"Correction, I can be quiet. You seem to have great difficulties in that particular area."
Kurt looked affronted as they checked the locks on all the doors and turned off the lights.
"Excuse me? I'm not the one who woke up Liam from TWO flights away! He thought you were crying!"
Blaine chuckled into his arm as he grabbed two bottles of water and followed Kurt upstairs to check the front door and set the alarm. Emma had told them she was staying at Ted's, but she knew the code even if she decided to come home. "That was a good night," he groaned, sidling up to Kurt and kissing his neck. "At least until that part."
He laughed and slapped Kurt's butt playfully, handing him the two bottles of water. "I'm gonna go tuck Sophie in, don't fall asleep before I get there!"
"I make no promises, good sir," Kurt called, but was laughing even as he said it. Even with all the unsure, his life was pretty great.