Dedicated to trufflemores. :)
Kurt exhaled deeply and closed his eyes, trying to soak in the atmosphere around him. Mosquito and cicada noises abounded, and he was passingly grateful he'd put on some bug spray before dragging his parents' old quilt outside and spreading it in the back yard. The weather was warm with a pleasing bite of coolness that came whenever the breeze popped up, and most importantly, the stars were out.
He opened his eyes again so he could start looking for the brightest star, but got distracted by the back gate squeaking as it shut.
"Hey, baby," Blaine said quietly, beaming a smile at him. "I got your text, what's up?"
"C'mere," Kurt said, patting the open space next to him. Once Blaine was stretched out beside him, Kurt rolled onto his side and dropped his head on Blaine's collarbone, content for a moment to just breathe with him. "So today is the tenth anniversary of my mom's death."
"What?" Blaine said, horrified. Kurt could just barely see Blaine's eyebrows scrunching up from the angle he was laying at. "Is there something I can-"
"It's fine, B," Kurt interrupted, knowing Blaine would just babble on for hours if Kurt allowed him to talk longer. "I just – wanted to introduce you? I know most people tend to go to their loved ones' graves in these situations, but that's not really my style. Oh God, was this a weird idea? Did you think I wanted something-"
"Kurt. It's not weird, it's nice. I wasn't expecting it, but I like this development," Blaine said, helping Kurt realize that perhaps his boyfriend wasn't the only nervous rambler in their relationship. "How do you usually talk to her?"
"I, um. Mom used to read me this story at bedtime about an astronaut who told his kids to look up at the stars whenever they missed him, and he'd know and wave to them from whatever planet or asteroid or whatever that he was exploring. When she got sick and knew she wasn't going to make it, she told me she'd be up there, too, and that she'd always be watching over me. The first night after she died, I snuck out here and found the brightest star I could see, and started telling it about my day, just in case she'd missed anything. Then it became my tradition every year on that day." Kurt knew he was going to pill his shirt if he kept fidgeting with it as he talked, but he couldn't help himself. He felt like he was dropping a nuclear bomb of personal details onto Blaine just then, and he didn't know what would happen once the bomb hit.
Blaine was silent for a long moment. When Kurt finally looked up at him, he was squinting at the sky, a tiny scowl on his face. "So...is that one the brightest?" he asked, pointing up at a star just off to the right of them. "I think it is."
"Yeah. Yeah, I think so," Kurt responded after a brief look of his own. "That one's my mom for sure."
"Well? Are you gonna introduce me?" Blaine asked, an eager smile on his face. "Manners, Kurt, c'mon."
"You are such a dork," Kurt muttered, smiling along with Blaine. He couldn't deny the relief that coursed through him at Blaine's reaction. "Mom? Hi. Remember that guy I told you about, Blaine? He'd like to meet you."
At Kurt's prompting gesture, Blaine fixed his eyes on the star and spoke, softly and respectfully. "Hi, Mrs. Hummel."
"Elizabeth. She'd like that."
"Elizabeth. Uh, it's really nice to meet you. Kurt's told me so many wonderful things about you that I kind of feel like I already know you, but this is good. I need to meet all his parents as his boyfriend, right?" He chuckled sheepishly. "Since you've been watching over Kurt all this time, you've probably seen me around a lot. You've probably also seen all the boneheaded choices I made before we started dating."
"She forgives you for being blind to my perfection for so long," Kurt teased, never one to let Blaine off the hook.
"Oh, really?" Blaine teased back.
"No, seriously. Mom always looked like a respectable housewife, but she and Dad had matching his'n'hers guns, and she used to be able to outshoot him. I heard the stories. She probably would've threatened you even more than Dad did," Kurt said, and Blaine paled.
"In that case, I definitely need to finish my thought. I just wanted to let you know that now that I've finally sorted out my feelings, I plan on being there for Kurt for as long as he'll let me be in his life. Your son is so amazing, Elizabeth, though I'm sure I'm not saying anything new to you here, and I'm so grateful to get access to one of the people who helped shape him into who he is today."
Kurt felt a few tears escape as Blaine finished his speech. "You know Mom would've loved you, right, Blaine? I'm not just saying that, either. She'd probably be trying to plan our wedding on the sly."
"And not let you have any of the fun?"
"I'd let her have some of her decisions. As long as they went with our color scheme. And season. And theme."
"Uh huh."
"So probably none of them. But I'd appreciate her efforts," Kurt said, nuzzling into Blaine's chest a little.
Blaine wrapped his arms around Kurt's waist. "I love you."
"I love you too. You think I would've let you meet my mom otherwise? I haven't even brought Carole or Finn out here, and we're technically related. You're so special to me, Blaine."
"I'm genuinely honored. Your mom sounds like she was a fantastic woman," Blaine said. He bent his head down to kiss Kurt's hair gently.
"She was the best. I want to tell you tons of stories about her, but right now, I also just want to lay here and stargaze with you for a while. I need to create some good memories of this day, too."
"Whatever you want." Blaine squeezed Kurt in a close approximation of a hug for a moment before turning his gaze back to the sky. "Hey, is that a planet?"
Kurt allowed himself a minute to bask in the safety that came with being in Blaine's presence before following Blaine's pointing finger. "Venus, maybe? We can see Venus from here, right?"
"The love goddess's planet. How fitting," Blaine said, and Kurt just had to agree.