Live While We're Young
Chapter One "The Mall"
An eye twitched.
"You know this isn't as bad as you're making it out to be, buddy."
A scowl.
"Okay I'm sorry I called you buddy. Don't give me that look! It's too weird to see you looking like that when... you're like that."
"Do I care?" Kurt Hummel asked dangerously which really couldn't be all that intimidating when one Finn Hudson saw the look on the face of a two year old dressed in stylish little denim overalls and a pacifier in the little toddler's hand.
One month. That's how long Kurt had been the size of a baby. Burt and Carole had freaked out quite badly when they found their son back to his primary years, but had accomodated to the situation. Apparently Kurt had been injected with an experimental chemical that had regressed his hormones and therefore his body and partially his emotions.
It took a month for Kurt to get used to his situation, and that wasn't even getting used to the fact he might never be back to normal. Their parents had (against Kurt's wishes though he later contributed grudgingly) changed the flamboyant teen's room into a nursery. Burt had allowed Kurt to help choose the decor to appease the toddler, and it had been a small step towards getting Kurt used to it. There had been a lot of ups and downs in the month thus far, but Finn could remember incidents that made him feel accomplished in helping his now baby brother.
The moment Finn and Burt had doubleteamed to convince Kurt that pull-ups were a must? Definitely one to remember as well.
"Come on little bro, it's just one day. I can't leave you home alone. Our parents would kill me!" Finn
"I will not go see them like this!" hollered Kurt who had yet to see the Glee club since his shrink. The group had been told that Kurt was hospitalized and that they could not see him as he was extremely contagious. To explain the obvious evidence of a toddler living in the Hudmel household, they had told everyone Carole's nephew would be staying with them for awhile, calling Kurt by the name of Christopher when others were around.
Kurt did not want to go to the mall with his glee club when he knew they would not know he was their friend, just a little boy being 'babysat' by Finn though he would often claim it was the other way around.
"You're going or I'm going to tell Dad about the bathtub incident with your moisturizing lotions," threatened Finn which evoked a gasp and then a tearful look from the miniaturized boy.
"You wouldn't," Kurt said, wide-eyed. Finn felt bad using blackmail to get him to comply, since it was a moment when Kurt's childish emotions overcame common sense and he'd played potions with the lotions he could no longer use, dumping them in the bathtub and clogging the tub. Finn had helped him cover it up by attempting to clear the drain and tell Burt it was a mishap with bubble bath when he'd tried to give Kurt his bath.
"Fine, but if Rachel or anyone cooes baby talk at me, you're a dead man." Kurt relented, stuffing his pacifier into his mouth and turning onto his stomach moodily, his attention going back to Fashion Runway that he'd been watching when Finn got home.
"Deal!" Finn concured happily.
Kurt wasn't looking forward to going to the mall later today at all, mostly because of his situation and being seen in public again. No one knew who he was obviously, but he hated playing baby. At least at home he never had to do that, he was thankful that anyone had not brought company home; well, besides the day his dad found a woman willing to babysit him.
He looked up at his baby sitter, a young girl by the name of Nevaeh and only a few years older than Kurt's real age, to see her humming as she made lunch for him. She had been informed he was a teenage boy mentally, so Kurt found her a good enough babysitter if he had to absolutely have one mostly because she hadn't freaked out.
"Hey my little diva, whatcha in the mood for today?" Nevaeh hummed as she poured the soy milk into a plastic cup and screwed the lid on. She may have found Kurt's diet a little strange for the now toddler, but Kurt had convinced his father to tell her he had a sensitive stomach, escaping most hearty meals when she watched him.
"That!" Kurt pointed towards the CD to his left as he looked. The young lady smiled and put it into the player, singing along to the song. Kurt allowed a smile to grace his lips and he pitched in with his even higher voice. His throat felt slightly scratchy, but he ignored it in favor of belting out the lyrics as best as he could. He would train this tiny voice as much as possible.
"Someone sounds happy," a chuckle came from the doorway and Kurt turned around to see his father entering, his cap askew atop his head. Kurt grinned and launched himself at his dad's knees. Burt bent down and scooped his little son up into his arms, chucking him under the chin and then kissing the boy's forehead.
"What'd you do today, scooter?" Burt asked in amusement.
"Project runway was on today so Monsieur Kurt refused to leave the TV for the better part of the morning, then nap, then voila, lunch time as you now see." Nevaeh answered for them as she stole Kurt from her employer and sat him in the booster seat. She really was pretty good at her job, though that was perhaps because Kurt was more mature than the kids she usually babysat.
"Did not," Kurt pouted, earning a grin from his father. Burt had become more affectionate with his son now back to his baby years, making Kurt love his father all the more as the toddler side of him absolutely adored his dad (though he never called Burt, daddy, so far and he hoped it stayed that way. It felt like it would cement his situation all the more).
"Just stopped by to check up on you before I head out back to the shop. See you at bedtime kiddo." Burt said.
"Finn taking over in a few hours?" Nevaeh asked as she sat down to eat as well. Burt nodded and ruffled the toddler's hair and waving at the woman before leaving. Kurt eyed his lunch warily, his stomach turning slightly at the sight, before digging into the chicken nuggets and praying the feeling would disappear if he ate.
Kurt pouted as he sat in his car seat silently, the pacifier he was now attached to in his mouth. He had asked Nevaeh to help him dress fashionably before Finn got home so that he could at least look good. The most he wore in this pathetic little body was semi tight jeans and a Red Power Ranger T-shirt with a black jacket and his favorite light up Power Ranger shoes. Kurt had always liked the Power Rangers as a child, so had conceded to the outfits and decor with them instead of the princess-like theme he'd originally wanted.
"We're here!" Finn said a little too cheerfully. Kurt didn't say a word as his step-brother removed him from the car seat and pulled him out of the cat.
Before Finn could put him down, Kurt grasped his shirt collar in his small fists and refused to let go, making Finn give him a confused look, but perch him on his hip instead. If Finn was going to make him do this, then he could play the shy child.
The New Directions wasn't too hard to spot, Kurt mused as he was carried towards them the minute they entered the mall.
"He's so cute!" squealed one of the girls the second they came into view. Kurt cringed into the pacifier, glad he had brought it with him to hide his mouth and prevent a witty comment from coming forth.
If one of them pinched his cheeks, he was going to show them Santana's lima heights in his own way.
Finn glanced over at his baby brother who was sitting quietly on Quinn's lap facing Mercedes who was babytalking to him. He winced, knowing Kurt was going to cockblock him at every opportunity later on in revenge, as he'd threatened to do on the car ride there.
"So why are we just now meeting this cutie-patootie?" Quinn asked the boy, jiggling her legs to bounce the toddler who simply sucked on the pacifier and avoided looking at any of them, sometimes rubbing at his eyes with the palm of his hand.
Finn shrugged, unsure of a response he could come up with and turned his attention back to Rachel's rambling about plans for a new song that could help them at Regionals that they could do in honor of Kurt.
The mention of Kurt Hummel changed the atmosphere ever so slightly and Finn noticed Kurt's eyes downcast as his friends talked about how they missed the countertenour.
"How about we go to that Build-a-Bear so Chris can get a little buddy? Most kids his age always have a stuffed animal. Does he have one?" Tina asked.
"Several, no favorite though. " Finn answered automatically thinking of the millions of stuffed animals piled around the house thanks to the ever present bambi-eyes Kurt gave his father for them alongside his enormous amount of action figures surprisingly (though Finn understood later when Kurt engaged himself in planning Batman and Spiderman's wedding with a Barbie doll looking strikingly like Rachel dumped in red paint that Kurt was later put in timeout for).
The group exited the food court they were in and headed towards the yellow and blue store that had Kurt both happy and annoyed with. He loved stuffed animals, but really this was stupid and immature.
Quinn set him on his feet and he reached up to grasp on the hem of her skirt so he wouldn't get trampled on by the slightly bigger kids in here running amok. His other hand grasped the ring of his pacifier as he looked around with Quinn leading him. The rest of the group mingled and looked at the adorable little clothes with the Glee guys hanging outside instead.
Kurt spotted a puppy dog on a stand and he tugged on Quinn's skirt while pulling out his pacifier. He took a breath and put on the child act.
"That!" Kurt announced, pointing at the puppy with his index finger and letting go of the skirt to bound over to it. He gave it a critical eye, pondering how it would look in his room with the others before he squealed as he was picked up.
"This one sweetie?" Quinn asked, clearly knee deep in motherly instinct around him. Kurt nodded and was pleased when she picked one out and took him to the stuffing machine where a woman cooed and told him to put the little heart in his hands and give it a kiss. Inwardly rolling his eyes, he sweetly did as told and watched her stuff it.
"Done!" Kurt bounced as he made sure she didn't overstuff his new prized possession. She sewed the animal up and handed it to him before he raced to the clothing area only to be scooped up again. Dear Gaga they were so handsy with him it was ridiculous!
"Down! Now!" Kurt demanded, kicking his small feet. They were halted by a hand and he saw it had been Sam who had stopped his mini Divi fit (he refused to call it a tantrum like his dad did to make him feel childish).
"Hey now, we don't kick others." Sam chided and Kurt glared, struggling to removed himself from Mercedes's hold and Sam's grip.
"Does Chris seriously act like that to get his way?" he heard Tina ask Finn and he felt his lips wobble. So what if he was having a diva fit? They were carting him around and he wanted to do what he wanted and he never wanted to come here with them as this stupid little kid!
Kurt burst into tears, his toddler emotions getting the best of him as Finn took him from Mercedes and jiggled him in his arms.
"Paci?" Kurt hiccuped as he burried his head into Finn's neck.
Quinn handed over the pacifier which Finn placed in Kurt's mouth. The toddler eventually calmed down and rested his head, closing his glasz eyes.
"You're a little warm buddy," Finn murmured as he placed a hand to Kurt's forehead.
"He's probably not feeling well. He doesn't throw tantrums a lot, " Finn said to their friends. Kurt cracked open one eye, suckling on the pacifier, and reached a hand for the puppy in Mercedes' arms. She gave him a soft smile and held it out to him.
"Want to get something for him to wear little man?" Mercedes coached and Kurt nodded sleepily, the effects of his tantrum showing.
The girls spent their time picking out little outfits for the toddler who nodded or shook his head from his spot against Finn until finally they left the building with a few bags and a now sleeping child.
"He's almost as bad as Porcelean," Santana snorted. Kurt had been picky about the little clothes for his puppy that he'd yet to name. The girls couldn't help but agree to Finn's amusement.
They parted after a few more hours of shoppings for the girls and hanging out for the guys, Finn's baby brother snoozing against his shoulder until they left.
"Finn?" The football player looked up from his video game to see the toddlerized boy standing in front of his bedroom door sleepily. Finn couldn't help but think Kurt was way too adorable for his own good sometimes.
Clad in the satin green pajamas bottoms with a Scooby-doo top, hair ruffled to the extremes, clutching the ring to his pacifier and holding his new stuffed animal, he looked every part the tuckered out toddler.
"Yeah, Kurt?" Finn asked as he set his controller down.
"Sorry for being a brat," he mumbled, his cheeks flushed from the fever he developed over the course of the day. Finn made a signal and Kurt shufffled over to him, letting Finn put him in his lap.
"Sorry for making you go when you didn't want to," was Finn's reply. The two brothers shared the quiet for a little bit and Finn was grateful for the time he got to spend with his now baby brother.
Sure he missed Kurt a lot as well... Kurt, but he adored the toddler all the more.
Like when Kurt fell into the toddler mode and giggled at funny faces.
Or played dress up in Carole's clothes (particularly the heels).
Or convinced Burt AND Finn to have a tea party with him and Carole.
Or when the little boy cried and settled only when he had his pacifier and was laying against someone.
Finn didn't know if this injection thing was going to last forever, but he couln't help but think that if Kurt had to grow up all over again, he couldn't wait to see it happen.
Author's Note: So I'm starting my own prompts-story only in a sort of de-aged universe (Mostly fandoms I wrote for before and with charaters I love, see my profile). This particular one was sitting in my head for awhile and I decided to write it on my iPad after a really stressful exam. If you have a prompt idea feel free to PM or review. No promises I'd do them all but I could certainly try.
Disclaimer: I do not own Glee however much I wish I could at least know the cast.
Also: I'll probably add more one-shots pertaining to this universe I created in my head so if you have a prompt for this one, feel free to ask.