Inspired in part by an idea from Lorna anderson-hastings on Tumblr. :)
Blaine awoke in the middle of the night to an empty bed and a light on in the nursery. If a baby actually lived there, then that probably wouldn't be too weird, but since he and Kurt still had a few months to go before they were officially fathers, he was kind of confused.
He took a moment to rub the sleep out of his eyes before standing up and padding down the hallway, yawning as he went. When he walked into the soon-to-be-nursery, though, he thought he might still be dreaming.
Kurt was frenetically painting, covering both the walls and himself in the calming sea green they'd chosen since they were keeping the baby's sex a surprise until it was born. There were streaks along Kurt's arms and cheeks, even some in his hair, and one right on the tip of his nose that Blaine just wanted to kiss in his mushy, half-awake state.
Blaine shook himself before speaking. "Kurt? Babe, why-"
"We're running out of time, Blaine!" Kurt cut in anxiously, moving his roller even quicker. "We've only got-"
"Three months," Blaine finished, coming up to Kurt and wrapping his arms around Kurt's waist from behind. "That's more than enough time to paint and furnish the nursery, sweetheart."
"But this parenting website I was on today said that paint fumes can linger for at least two months, if not longer," Kurt said, a little shrill. "There's only the one small window in here, Blaine. What if we accidentally give our baby brain damage because we make it sleep in a room full of toxic fumes?"
"But we have three-"
"Yes, but we're going to need at least two coats on the walls, and the furniture is going to smell like new paint, too," Kurt said, anticipating Blaine's remark. "And what if-"
Blaine waited for Kurt to finish his thought, but he seemed too shook up to speak, frozen in Blaine's arms. He leaned up to kiss Kurt on the back of the neck before saying," What if what, baby?"
"What if it's premature?" Kurt whispered, dropping the roller carefully in the paint tray before turning in Blaine's embrace to wrap his own arms around Blaine's shoulders. His eyes were watery, making Blaine's heart break. "What if it comes early, and we're not ready for it, and since we don't have a room for it it gets even sicker?"
"I - I don't know," Blaine said, hugging Kurt tightly. "But I think if it comes this early, our little bean is going to have to stay in the hospital for a while anyways, so we'd have a little time to pull the room together."
Kurt dropped his head into the crook of Blaine's neck. "I just want everything to be perfect," he said. "I keep thinking about everything that could possibly go wrong as I try to sleep, and then I end up coming in here and trying to paint at 2:30 in the morning."
"Oh, baby," Blaine said, rubbing down Kurt's back and pressing a kiss to his temple. "Is there something I can do to help? Do I need to put a blocker on all the parenting websites you've bookmarked? Should I grab a roller?"
"Oh God no," Kurt said, chuckling once and pulling away slightly. "I know that I'm going to come in here tomorrow once I've gotten some rest and be horrified at how streaky and uneven my paint job is, we don't need to make it worse."
"I'm sure the neighbors will love the screech you're gonna let out," Blaine said, laughing.
Kurt smacked him in the arm, but he had a smirk on his face, too. "I'm in the midst of a meltdown and you decide to make fun of me? Worst husband ever."
"Would the worst husband ever offer to give you a back rub once you've washed all the paint off of you?" Blaine said, raising his eyebrows.
"I take it back," Kurt said immediately. "I'm gonna go hop in the shower before you can try to back out of this deal." He hustled out of the room, leaving Blaine to snicker lightly as he put the lid back on the paint can before wandering back down the hall himself.
Blaine yawned as he waited for Kurt to clean up, knowing he'd regret this midnight adventure later but unable to care just then. Making sure Kurt felt stable was more important.
"Are you ready for me?" Kurt teased as he entered, striking a pose against the doorframe.
"You know it, hot stuff," Blaine joked back, patting the open space next to him on the bed. "Get your cute butt over here."
Kurt splayed out on the bed, starfishing his limbs a bit and releasing a tiny sigh as he relaxed into the mattress. Blaine crawled on top of him and started massaging his shoulders, glad Kurt had his eyes shut and couldn't see the frown that developed on Blaine's face as he felt just how knotted up Kurt was. He pressed gentle kisses to Kurt's neck and shoulders every couple of minutes, too, hoping to convey a sense of tranquility all the while.
"Mmmm," Kurt purred, letting out a yawn that scrunched up his entire face. "You're so good at this, B."
"I'm just glad I can help," Blaine said, keeping his voice quiet. "Don't worry about staying awake for me, okay?"
"Wasn't planning on it," Kurt said, slurring his words together. "Feelin' really sleepy all of a sudden."
"Good," Blaine said, pressing a little harder and feeling Kurt practically melt underneath him.
"Love you, Blaine."
"I love you too, Kurt," Blaine said, smiling at the gentle snore Kurt let out in response. He finished smoothing out the worst of the knots in Kurt's back before rolling off of him and turning out the bedside lamp he'd been using to see by. Kurt curled onto his side once he was free, and Blaine noted happily that his face was worry-free. He pulled Kurt into his arms once he'd settled onto his own pillow, kissing his hair once before succumbing to sleep himself.
The next time Blaine woke up, it was to the smell of coffee and a smiling husband offering him a mug while saying that, yes, the nursery looked just as atrocious as he feared, but at least Blaine stopped him before he could wreak unfixable havoc.
Blaine had definitely had worse mornings.