KURT HUMMEL: CENTRAL PARK: SATURDAY DAY

The day couldn't have been more beautiful. The sun was out, it was warm yet not excruciatingly so, and he was out enjoying it with his beautiful daughter and his best friend. It was supposed to be a day for him and Annalise to spend some time together, but to his surprise she had asked Rachel if she wanted to join them. Not that he minded.

It had been Annalise's idea to go to Central Park. He had suggested that they'd go to his friend's art gallery, but she had been insistent. It was like she could predict the weather and just know that it would be a perfect day for the outdoors.

Kurt wouldn't be surprised if that was actually the case. His daughter was amazing.

So far, Rachel and Annalise had been discussing a guy Rachel had met at her and Kurt's last wedding gig. Kurt had told her that meeting someone at a wedding was cliche, but that had only made her turn to Annalise.

Walking in Central Park, Kurt felt a little unnecessary.

"Aaand, I'm all out of coffee," Rachel said, tilting her paper cup upside down over her mouth, willing the last drops to come out.

"You know what I'm craving?" Annalise said, grinning. "Brownies."

Rachel put her arm around Annalise and looked at Kurt. "I like the way your girl thinks."

Kurt shook his head even though he was smiling. Those two would never stop pairing up against him, would they?

"I thought we went to the park to enjoy the nice day, not to get away from it?"

Annalise sighed. "If it was up to you we'd all be holed up in a room somewhere, our clothes starting to smell like indoors and oil paint."

"I happen to like that smell," Kurt lied, mentally shuddering at the thought of his clothes smelling foul.

He watched as Annalise escaped Rachel's arm and put her arms around his waist. She looked up at him through her lashes, and he had to hold back a curse because why did she have to take after Blaine's signature move? It still weakened him, and it probably always would. Of course he would do anything she wanted.

"Please, Daddy," she said, fluttering her lashes while pouting her lips. "I have wanted to try the brownies at a place close by forever, and we're here now. It's just on the other side of The Pond. Won't you go with me?"

Sighing, Kurt moved a blonde strand of hair away from his daughter's eyes. He looked up at Rachel, and found her smirking at him. He knew what she was thinking; she was not one to keep her opinions to herself. He knew it too - that he was spoiling Annalise - but he couldn't help it. He wanted to give her the world and more.

"Sure, we can swing by."

If he had known what he'd be agreeing to, he would have thought twice.

When they were walking away from the park and were about to cross Central Park South, he finally saw it. The place still looked the same way it had all those years ago. Sarabeth's.

"Where exactly are we going?" Kurt asked, and he realized his voice was uneven.

His heart started beating faster when she pointed at the place he feared she would.

"Oh."

He remembered his cold, bare hand holding Blaine's as they ran across the street toward the place. He'd brought gloves, obviously, but he hadn't worn them. He had wanted to feel Blaine's skin against his own, and all the cold in the world would have been worth it.

"Are you okay, Dad?" Annalise asked when they had crossed the street. She was watching his face with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Annalise nodded, yet exchanged a look with Rachel that he didn't quite understand. Yes, he knew that look. The raised eyebrow, the faint smile, and the slight tilt of her head all meant a silent I told you so, but he didn't understand why she was giving Rachel that look.

"Let's go then," Rachel said, quite sternly.

There was a nervous tingle in his stomach when they entered the place, and Kurt just nodded when the girls asked him if he wanted a brownie too. He didn't even realize he was doing it until it was too late. He had planned on turning it down because he didn't feel like stomaching anything at the moment.

Rachel and Annalise felt lucky to get a table by the windows, but Kurt didn't. It was the exact same table he had sat at with Blaine over a decade ago.

Rachel started picking on her brownie. "This is a nice place. Maybe a bit crowded."

Annalise smiled. "I think it's really nice. Don't you think so, Dad?"

Nodding, Kurt took a bite of his own brownie and chewed slowly, deliberately. It seemed as if the bite would never dissipate. Despite it, he enjoyed the flavor. Sarabeth's chocolates had a specific characteristic to it that he couldn't quite pinpoint, and he'd told Blaine the same thing back in the day. Back then, they had shared a piece of chocolate cheesecake. Even though brownies and cheesecakes were completely different, they still shared the same sweetness.

Their forks scraped against the white porcelain in a soft rhythm, cutting the cake piece by piece. Kurt brought a bite to his mouth and closed his eyes when it started melting in his mouth. He knew he shouldn't satisfy his gluttonous side, but when he was around Blaine he couldn't stop himself. Blaine made him forget about rules and necessities, and all he wanted to do was just to enjoy and enjoy and enjoy.

The small café was bustling with life around them. Forks and knives hit plates, the air was dense and moist with coffee steam, and despite the busy hour they had managed to score a window seat.

It had been unnecessary though, because just like during the hours lost in the park they only had eyes for each other.

"That is incredibly delicious," Blaine moaned, and Kurt opened his eyes.

"It makes me forget how cold I am." A lie, and then a chuckle. Blaine was what made him forget.

He would have blushed if his cheeks hadn't already been rosy from the cold.

"I know that today probably was a lot different from what you'd expected…" Blaine began, slowly piercing the cheesecake with his fork over and over.

Kurt put a hand over Blaine's to still the nervous movements. He was starting to feel sorry for the cake.

"Blaine, I love you. While I could've done with a little less cold, it was still a great day. I don't regret a thing."

"Really?" Blaine looked into his eyes with such concern, such sincerity, a look he would come to know very well. A look that would end up breaking him. But that day, he still loved it. It wasn't broken yet. "Because I know we don't have a lot of time with school and work to just be with each other, and I was the one in charge of today's-"

"Blaine," Kurt said, his voice to the brim with laughter. "Slow down! I bet reaching that carousel would've been incredibly romantic, but... I don't care! Not anymore. When I was sixteen, all I cared about was romance. But that was before I met you. Now I just wanna be. Just being with you… that's enough for me."

A smile finally found Blaine's lips. His shoulders slumped, as if they were relaxing.

"I want to give you the world, but at the end of the day I'm just a boy," Blaine said lamely.

Kurt shook his head. "Not a boy. You're a man. My fierce man. And as long as I can say that, you don't need to worry about a thing."

"Are you sure you're okay, Kurt?" Rachel asked.

He didn't trust his voice, so he took another bite of the brownie with a smile and nodded. For the rest of the day, he did his best to keep up with Rachel's and Annalise's conversation, saying a word or two whenever necessary. Yet Rachel would occasionally sneak glances at him with her big, brown eyes, and the look of concern remained on her face for the rest of the day.

I hope you enjoyed!