Ever Heard of Simplicity?

It felt odd, being in Ohio for more than just a weekend. A two week long vacation, calling an extended stay hotel "home". Dalton didn't like being cooped up, but it was a miracle that they'd found such a nice hotel that allowed pets. Dalton was well behaved, only barked if he felt endangered. He would whimper a little and paw at the door when he needed to go outside. It wasn't so much their training of him to be this way, although Kurt and Blaine had definitely done some training of their beloved pet.

Mostly Kurt training him to not sleep on the bed and Blaine counter-training him to sleep at the foot of the bed.

Blaine spent a little time with his family, a couple of hours the first few days he was in town. Kurt only went once, feeling uncomfortable around the people that felt uncomfortable around him. Not that the Andersons were rude or disrespectful to him, because they weren't. They were polite, friendly, kind, until Kurt or Blaine made more than a passing comment that reflected their relationship and living situation. It would get quiet, uncomfortable. Kurt liked Blaine's family well enough and they seemed to like him in turn, but he refused to put himself through all of that. Blaine didn't mind, didn't hold it against Kurt in the least. If they weren't his family, he probably wouldn't have even told them he'd be in town.

On the other side of things, Blaine spent more time in the Hummel house than in the hotel. Dinner one night, lunch the next day, game night the next. He'd been accepted to the family almost immediately in high school, even when Kurt's father thought they might not last. High school romances rarely do, after all. However, Burt Hummel was beyond happy that Blaine was not only still in Kurt's life but in theirs as well. Blaine was good for Kurt, just as Kurt was good for Blaine.

Finn and Rachel were in town as well. It was a huge family gathering, Hummels and Hudsons and their spouses all meeting up for a few days in the year that they could get off together. They hadn't spent a lot of time together, each having their own things and lives and being unable to tear themselves away long enough to meet in one place. In fact, it felt like the last time they'd all gotten together like this had been for Finn and Rachel's wedding, which was surprisingly a small affair for the one time diva.

Kurt remembered how it felt to stand up beside his brother at the alter, watching as some of the girls from glee club walked into the church, followed by the maid of honor Quinn, followed lastly by Rachel. She had looked so lovely in the gown that Quinn and Kurt had spent ages with her picking out. Everyone was so captured by Rachel's appearance that they didn't notice the dopey in love look that Finn was wearing except for Kurt, who remembered very clearly reaching out to grasp his brother's hand and squeezing it hard enough to ground him.

It had been a beautiful ceremony. It was also before Kurt and Blaine were officially engaged, so it had been a tad bittersweet as well.

Now they were back in Lima, seeing the old sights and trying so hard not to get lost in old memories. They had plenty of good memories here; they just also both had plenty of bad ones as well.

A few days into the trip, they found themselves, Dalton in tow, at the park. The weather was perfect, warm with a nice breeze, to play fetch with the mutt before they had to be at the Hummel household for dinner. Dalton was tearing around the park, burning off the excess energy from being stuck in the hotel for so long.

"Don't let him run off Kurt." Kurt, who had stopped throwing the ball long enough to sit down in the grass, rolled his eyes at his other half across the little area they'd staked out for themselves.

"Where exactly is he going to go? We feed him, we play with him, and we give him a couple thousand dollars worth of a bed to sleep on. He's got it made." Blaine stumbled to his knees next to Kurt, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek as he did so.

"It's not the price of the bed that he cares about. It's that we're on it too." Kurt opened his mouth to give his opinion, but was knocked sideways by the dog in question as he skidded into his side. Dalton had gained some of the weight back, putting meat on his bones so that he no longer looked like a skeletal mess. His fur was also shiny and smooth to the touch after Kurt went out of his way to get the best food and shampoo for him.

Blaine would make fun of him for it, but there was the time when Blaine had forgotten to buy shampoo and might have accidentally used the dog's shampoo and it made his hair nicer than he'd ever felt it.

"Dad says we can take Dalton to the house tonight, as long as we bring a leash just in case." Blaine nodded, pressing his face against Kurt's shoulder as they watched Dalton chase after his tail, snipping at it every few seconds.

"He'll be on his absolute best behavior, I promise." Kurt rolled his eyes, checking that the coast was clear before pressing his lips to Blaine's. They didn't have to look over their shoulders while in New Jersey but they did in Ohio.

"You better be on your best behavior too. Which means, no playing footsie with me at the table, no inappropriate comments or innuendos shared with Finn, and try not to have too much wine this time. I don't feel like explaining to my father, again, that you're a lush and sometimes enjoy copping a feel in inappropriate settings."

Blaine sat back, face the picture of innocence except the playfulness in his eyes.

"When has too much wine ever made me handsy? I demand evidence." Kurt raised his hand and started ticking off fingers as he gave examples.

"Your sister's birthday, Finn and Rachel's wedding, your birthday, that dinner with some of your clients, that time you went to church and drank a little too much of the sacramental wine." Ignoring their surroundings, not that there was anyone in the park it seemed besides them, Blaine launched himself at Kurt, pinning him lightly to the ground and burying his nose in his neck.

"You're a filthy liar. Besides, I thought I said we were never to speak of the church thing again? Proof that religion just isn't the answer." Kurt couldn't help the snort that escaped him at those words.

"Religion isn't the answer but a copious amount of wine is?" Blaine bit down lightly on Kurt's neck, raising an eyebrow at the interesting noise that Kurt let slip at the pressure.

"You play dirty, Mister Hummel." Kurt ran his fingers over the thin tshirt covering his fiance's sides, grinning wickedly and a little too promising considering they were in public.

"I thought you liked it dirty, Mister Anderson."

Blaine groaned, dropping his face back to Kurt's neck to cover the sound. Dalton was still trotting around in the grass, chasing a stray butterfly now and then. They had a couple of hours before they had to meet Kurt's family, and what better way to waste time than to go back to the hotel and have sex?

"I know where your mind is and I approve. You get the dog, I'll get the car." Blaine wanted to laugh but instead he leaned up, kissing Kurt soundly before rocking onto his heels and running off in the direction Dalton had gone.

When they arrived at the Hummel household, a little later than they had planned. Burt didn't seem curious nor suspicious so Blaine counted it as a win. Dalton was on his best behavior, not jumping on the furniture or the people even though it was obvious by the exaggerated tail wag that he wanted to. Burt ran his hand over Dalton's head, while Carole made a loud noise as she bent down to give him a hug.

"Your father refuses to let us get a dog. Both of our kids are out of the house and I think we need to get a dog." Blaine laughed, kissing Carole's cheek as they hugged, before reaching up to hug Burt.

"Oh, we can loan you Dalton for the rest of our trip. You'll probably rethink the dog situation if we do that." Carole laughed and grabbed Dalton's leash, leading him further into the living room and removing the leash from his collar.

Finn and Rachel were already in the kitchen, with Finn picking at the food that was set on the counter to be brought into the dining area. Carole swatted at his hand before telling the kids to grab the food to put on the table. They worked together to bring it all there, which seemed like so much considering the fact that it was only the six of them eating.

They played catch up for the first little while of the meal, since this was the first time they had all been together this trip. They told stories of their work, their day to day lives. Finn and Rachel were living just outside of New York City, not terribly far from where Blaine and Kurt lived but they all had such busy schedules that it was nearly impossible to meet up for more than a quick meal every now and then.

Between dinner and desert, Carole grabbed two bottles of wine. Kurt shot Blaine a playful glance as she poured them both glasses. When she offered it to Finn and Rachel, neither of them accepted it.

"Are you sure?" Carole seemed uncertain, not to call either of them alcoholics but they definitely enjoyed a glass of wine or two (or three) when they were with family and friends.

"Very certain." Rachel smiled at the group before dropping her hand to her stomach. It was just as flat as it had always been but the gesture was unmistakable.

"You're pregnant?" There was a rush of congratulations as soon as Rachel and Finn confirmed it. Everyone stood up to hug and shake hands, Kurt unable to keep the smile off of his face as he pressed his hand to her belly, despite the fact that there wouldn't be anything to feel for a while.

"I didn't want to tell anyone before we went to the doctor, but he confirmed it. I'm going to be a mom!" Kurt hugged Rachel again while Blaine talked to Finn. After everything with finding her mom in high school and how that changed her views on parenthood, Kurt knew how much this meant to her. He knew how much she was going to strive to be the perfect mother. He was also pretty sure she'd be great at it.

"I'm so happy for you Rachel. I can't believe it." Not that she was the first one in their high school group to have a kid. Technically Quinn was the first, but her relationship with Beth wasn't one of a mother's. She spent time with her daughter, and Beth knew that Quinn was her real mother, but she didn't encroach on Shelby's parenting. As far as Kurt knew, Shelby and Rachel still talked every now and then, which might double now that Rachel was pregnant.

Puck had settled down with a nice woman a few years older than him named Marie. She had a son, two when they got together so probably five or six now, who Puck saw as his son. Of course he also went by Noah now, but none of the glee club had been able to make that switch. Tina and Mike had a little girl named Angela, Blaine's goddaughter. She was a sweet little girl who was absolutely in love with her godfather. Not that Kurt blamed her in the least.

Out of the high school romances, the only ones that made it past graduation had been Tina and Mike, Finn and Rachel, Santana and Brittany, and obviously Kurt and Blaine. They'd all had their problems, although Kurt was proud to say that they were the only ones that hadn't broken up for more than one month between getting together and where they were today. And that one month had been hell for both of them, so they liked to pretend it never happened.

"What do you mean, have I thought about names? I only just found out that I was pregnant!" Rachel was laughing, her hand tucked into the crook of Blaine's elbow as he ribbed her good naturedly. Finn was talking in low voices with his mother, who had tears in her eyes but a smile that could outshine the brightest light in the room.

The group settled down after that, returning to their deserts and drinks. The conversation slowly drifted from Rachel's pregnancy to Kurt and Blaine's upcoming nuptials. They had already sent out the invitations, although it was still a few months away, but most if not everyone had already RSVPed. It was a small affair, their mutual friends from Ohio plus their family and a number of their friends from college and work. It was going to be in New Jersey, since same sex marriages were legal there now.

"I'm going to be so fat! I mean it. I'm going to be wearing a parachute." Kurt laughed, pressing his napkin to his mouth so as to not spit out his wine.

"Oh shut up, you will not. You'll be glowing. You'll take away all of the attention on Kurt and I. Actually, that's exactly what will happen. I demand you give us back the invitation. You can't come."

There was so much laughter and joking for the rest of the night that by the time that Kurt and Blaine got in the car, somehow talking Burt into keeping Dalton for a few nights on Carole's insistence, they both complained of pain in their cheeks. Blaine had had the least to drink, so he was driving, with one hand stretched across to where Kurt was propped against the door half asleep, rubbing over his knee a couple of times.

"I can't believe Rachel's pregnant. Did you see how happy she and Finn looked?" Blaine smiled, half at what his fiance had said and half at the sleepy way he'd said it. Kurt was still drifting off, so it wasn't like he was expecting a response. Not that Blaine was entirely sure he could give him one just yet.

He loved Finn and Rachel, he was undeniably happy for them. The problem was that Blaine loved children and although gay marriage was becoming more and more accepted, gay adoption was still rather frowned on. It was possible, however it took ages. One of Kurt's coworkers told them that it took her and her partner almost three years to adopt their son, after countless false starts and doors being slammed in their faces, figuratively and literally.

Not that they were in any rush. They had talked about it in great detail once they started planning their wedding. They wanted children, more than one if possible. They would also like to have at least one that was blood related to them through a surrogate. However they were still young, only having been out of college a few years.

"We have all the time in the world. This is forever." That's what Kurt had said.

So Blaine wasn't in a rush to have children, he was just melancholy. Straight couples can decide to marry or have kids within a day, but for a gay couple, there has to be so much planning and backtracking. Having kids or getting married shouldn't come with contingency plans.

The next morning, with Kurt clutching his head through his morning ritual as if that alone would fend off the wine hangover he was experiencing, While Blaine was in the shower, Kurt grabbed his phone and hit the speed dial to call his father. It rang a couple of times before Burt's familiar gruff voice came over the speaker.

"Hello?"

"Hey dad, it's me. Just wondering if you wanted us to come pick Dalton up today or if you were entertaining the idea of maybe keeping him for a little while longer?" There was a noise in the background, Carole's voice rising in a laugh. He couldn't make out the words, but he did hear Dalton's name mixed in.

"You know, no rush. You two, I'm sure, have things to do. Carole and I are doing just fine with Dalton. We have the food you brought over with you last night and if we need more, I mean, how many different types of dog food can there be? So no rush."

They spoke for a little while longer, Kurt getting distracted as Blaine came out of the shower with the towel wrapped around his waist. With the thoughts going through his mind, Kurt had to end the conversation. He wasn't above thinking that there was some way his father would know what was on his mind, even over a phone.

"Do we need to go get Dalton?" Kurt shook his head, putting his cell phone back on the side table and slowly making his way over to where Blaine was rifling through his clothes for an outfit.

"You know, we don't really have anything to do today. My head is pounding, you look warm, let's just go back to sleep."

Not even thinking of refusing, Blaine pulled on the pajama bottoms he'd discarded for his morning shower before curling up in the bed with Kurt, their hands finding each other's under the covers without any trouble. They'd been sleeping beside each other for such a long time that it was second nature that the only awkward part was when they weren't curled around one another. Even after their fights, of which there had been a few blow outs, they still cuddled together in bed. Maybe not directly after, but both Blaine and Kurt were big on not going to bed angry.

When they woke up next, Blaine was sprawled half on top of Kurt. Kurt, who was used to the way that Blaine seemed to starfish over the entire bed sometimes, simply shifted so that he could keep an arm around his fiance's waist and stared up at the sleeping man.

He still woke up some mornings with this man wrapped around him and couldn't help but wonder how he not only captured the attention of him, but how he got to keep him. Not that Kurt couldn't give you a long list of his finest quality, because he did have a list and he kept it written down for reference, but it was just that... Blaine wasn't perfect, but it seemed like Blaine had been made especially for Kurt, and vice versa. They had just the right amount in common that they weren't bored of each other, but at the same time, they differed on so many other things that it kept them interesting. Over the years, Blaine and Kurt had seemingly become so attuned to one another that they knew when the other person was having problems or when something was bothering them. They didn't have to make the mundane small talk about their day at work, but they did, because... just because.

Kurt could feel his heart expanding at just the thought of all that he loved about Blaine. He couldn't believe that he was lucky enough to spend the rest of his life with this man, something he more than intended to do. Everything about their relationship spoke of a maturity that Kurt could remember his father being surprised about even when they were in high school.

Not to mention that the sex was fantastic and never boring. Which was something Kurt had been a little fearful of once they took that step.

Blaine stifled a yawn into Kurt's shoulder before smiling not so blearily down at Kurt.

"Did my thinking wake you?" Blaine laughed, burrowing his nose back into Kurt's shoulder and pressing a series of small kisses there.

"No, your slightly creepy yet terribly adoring staring might have though."

They stayed that way for a little while longer before Kurt announced that he just had to shower, he was feeling grimy and only a little less hungover than before. So Blaine let him up, skipping his usual morning kiss because morning breath plus hangover breath would just not be a kiss Blaine wanted to share with the love of his life. Instead, Blaine went through his outfits again to find one that would be comfortable.

They really didn't have any concrete plans for the day. They had another week to kill in Ohio, but it was Ohio. Besides seeing family and potentially going to check out their old haunts, there wasn't much they could do.

"Hey Kurt, how do you feel about going to check out Dalton?" Kurt had just turned the water off when the words came through the door. He'd thought about it. He hadn't gone there long, but Blaine had. In the end, they decided it would be worth the trip.

The headmaster wasn't the same one that neither Kurt nor Blaine remembered, but the vice principal was. He didn't recognize Kurt but Blaine he remembered, having been such an active member in extra curricular activities. They told them that as long as they didn't disrupt any of the summer classes that were going on, they were welcome to roam the halls once more.

Things had changed in the school. It still had the large windows and the entryways that looked to be made for giants, paintings and carvings and sculptures still littered the hallways, but it was still a little different than they remembered. Or maybe they just didn't remember it as well as they thought they did.

The room where they had had their first kiss had changed too. Where there had been tables and chairs were now benches facing the windows. Dalton wasn't a religious school so Kurt couldn't figure out what the vaguely church-like room had been set up for. No one was nearby that they could ask, and it didn't really matter.

"It's not the room that matters; it's what happened in it." Blaine raised an eyebrow before checking their surroundings and wrapping Kurt in his arms, pressing their lips together softly.

"Now we have a memory in the new room."

They made their way to the staircase where they had first met but didn't mount the steps.

"You don't want to go up there, recreate our very first meeting? I still have the pocket watch-" Kurt, not bothering to look to make sure they were alone, wrapped his arms around Blaine and held on tightly. It was different from their usual spur of the moment hugs, mostly because Blaine usually initiated those. It was tighter, as if Kurt was afraid to let go.

"Hey, hey, Kurt? Look at me Kurt, what's wrong?" Kurt loosened his grip just enough that he could pull back and meet Blaine's eyes, but not enough that they were no longer touching.

"Just, what if I had stopped someone else? Or what if you had been in too much of a rush? Or if Puck hadn't annoyed me enough to actually come spy? Or if you and Wes and David hadn't been nice enough to invite me back to discuss my inability to spy? Any number of things could have happened that would have stopped me from meeting you and becoming friends with you and I just... Blaine, you're the best thing that has ever happened to me. I'm not sure... I'm not sure I'd be here today if it wasn't for you."

Blaine pulled Kurt back to him, wrapping his arms around him as tight as he could without cutting off Kurt's circulation.

"Don't think about it Kurt. I know it's easier said than done, but don't. Because none of that matters now. All that matters now is that we're together and we're going to stay together. We're going to get married in a few months, we're going to be happy and even when we're miserable, and we'll still have each other."

Kurt nodded, barely able to do the motion in the tight embrace of Blaine's arms.

"I love you Blaine." It was simple, it was true. Four words that were uttered daily, without needing an occasion. Words that were said simply because they were true.

"And I love you Kurt."

They really didn't need anything else but that.

A/N: So, this is the finale of the EHo verse. It has been a lovely ride and I've enjoyed writing it. I also am really happy with the way this one turned out. Of course I might add to it, because I can't make up my mind, but it won't be for a while.

I've started the planning for my next multi-chaptered story. If you want to know more, or contribute your ideas, go on to my tumblr (lemyh . tumblr . com / tagged / klaine) and look for the post asking for ideas. Just remove the spaces. Or just send me a message on here, if that's easier for you.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to every person that has added these stories to their favorites or alerts, anyone who has reviewed with a kind word, to every single person that has read any of these or any of my writing. You... it means to absolute world to me. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.