[Ready for the finale? Here it is!]

All through the long drive home, Blaine kept casting uneasy glances toward his son who remained stubbornly mute. They dropped Collette off at her home and she gave Drake a long hug before parting tearfully.

They had only started pulling away from her block when Blaine heard a sniff from the passenger seat. Drake had his face turned toward the window, but Blaine noticed the slight heaving of his shoulders. Quickly he pulled up to the nearest kerb and stopped the car. Without a word, without even asking, he turned and pulled his son into his arms. Drake broke down completely, sobbing with abandon as Blaine hugged him close, gently stroking his back. He didn't ask questions, he knew he would talk to him when he was ready.

After almost fifteen minutes, Drake's tears finally seemed to subside, but he was still sniffing loudly.

Blaine decided to take the plunge and be the first to speak up.

"It's ok, buddy. It's ok. I'm right here. I'll always be right here. Let it out, whatever it is. You can let it all out."

He kept murmuring soothingly as he comforted his distraught son.

"Did he say anything to you?" he asked at last, when he felt Drake might just be ready to talk.

The boy nodded against his chest.

Blaine bit his lip.

"H- he was s-so big. He-he scared me... a little," Drake blubbered through his tears.

"Oh son, I'm so sorry! Was he mean to you?"

Drake shook his head. No.

"He- he was... really rough though. He-he never smiled..."

Blaine nodded understandingly, his heart thumping loudly in his chest hoping against hope that this wouldn't leave too great an emotional scar on Drake. He continued to stroke his back gently.

"I- I don't want him to be my dad."

Drake's voice came out muffled from the front of Blaine's shirt. Blaine frowned and pulled back a little, puzzled.

"What do you mean, Drake?"

Drake's head remained bent and he fiddled with the gear-stick, not looking Blaine in the face.

"I- I want... you to be my dad," he mumbled thickly.

Blaine felt a wave of incandescent love flare in his heart.

"Hey, news flash? In case you hadn't noticed, I am your dad!"

Drake tried a tremulous watery smile.

"You know what I mean. My real dad."

Blaine forced his chin up to look him directly in the eyes and said.

"Drake, you are my son. This is as real as it gets. No jokes, no lies. I am your father and I love you with my whole heart, more than I've loved anything or anyone in my entire life. It may be just blood that separates us, but I can promise you one thing. No father can love his son more than Kurt and I love you."

Drake drew in a shuddering breath and in the next instant flung himself at Blaine, crushing him in a bone-shattering hug.

" You're right, Dad. And I love you so, so much. I'm- I'm so sorry for how I've behaved over this, for the last week..."

Blaine hugged him back equally hard, feeling tears pricking the backs of his eyes and the beginnings of a euphoric smile forming across his face.

Kurt felt like he hadn't been able to keep still all day. His mind had been wandering back over and over to their conversation last night and he'd spent hours fretting over just where Blaine and Drake might be at this moment. He'd kept picking up his phone, intent on calling his husband and then flinging it back down again, because he'd promised he wouldn't disturb them.

He had started baking cookies just so his hands would have something to occupy themselves with and by now had five batches ready and cooling. He was just taking the sixth lot out of the oven when he heard the front door opening and something barrelled into him, clutching him so tightly about the waist that he almost gasped for breath.

"Drake! Watch it, sweetheart! You'll burn yourself!"

Kurt swatted Drake's hands playfully away from the still-warm oven door while pretending to be annoyed. In reality, his heart was hammering in his chest. Now was the moment he would find out whether his son had truly come back to him or whether he would have to endure his heart breaking over a period of years as his little boy grew ever more distant from them.

He turned around to find Drake clinging to him, his face buried deeply in his apron, smelling in the warm aroma of fresh cookie dough. Kurt tried to prise his boy off himself, but to no avail.

"Drake! Let me go!"

"Promise me you'll never give me back?"

The muffled words made Kurt still.

"What?"

Drake didn't answer immediately, only burying his face deeper into Kurt's stomach.

"You adopted me from someone, right? If- if you wanted, could you send me back again?"

Something in Kurt ached deeply to even be asked such a question.

"Why- why would we want to do that, Drake?" he asked, hesitantly.

Drake again took his time before replying.

"If- if you stopped loving me...?"

Kurt felt the tears filling his eyes as he looked down at the little brown head at his waist.

"No," he breathed, dashing them away hurriedly with a finger.

"No, we can't send you back. We can never send you back. You're ours. For better or for worse. For life."

And Kurt sank down to his knees, gathering his son into his arms and holding him so close that he felt he'd never be able to let go again.

It might be technically possible to send an adopted child back to the agency or an orphanage, but Kurt knew with bone-deep certainty, that it would be impossible for him or even for Blaine, to ever consider that possibility for their children, no matter how bad things got.

No. They were theirs. For keeps.

They were sitting once more around the living room coffee table, just the three of them, but this time it was Drake doing the talking.

"I guess meeting them didn't turn out exactly like I expected it to," Drake confessed, fiddling uneasily with a coaster from the table.

Kurt and Blaine exchanged an excited glance, but remained silent, allowing Drake to continue.

"I know we're like related, but... I couldn't really connect with either of them, you know? I mean, Collette was really nice and everything, but..."

This time he looked up to be confronted by the extremely sympathetic countenances of his fathers.

He returned his gaze to the carpet before he brought up the second thing that had been bothering him.

"I think I look like him," he said softly, almost guiltily.

"Who, honey?"

"My father."

The thought seemed to make Drake particularly miserable.

"I... didn't like him very much."

Blaine looked at Kurt with concern, not knowing what to say at this. Kurt's eyes seemed to have locked onto his son and he went and knelt before him, so they could be at eye level.

"You're right, you know. You do look like your father."

Drake looked up at him, his face mirroring his dismay.

But Kurt remained resolute.

"Your father Blaine," he stated.

This time it was undisguised surprise that sparked in Drake's eyes. Kurt could tell he'd even caught Blaine unawares.

"You have your father's eyes, Drake. Blaine's eyes. I saw it in you the day you were born."

Drake was scrutinizing him to see if he might be joking, but Kurt was dead serious.

"And a bit of his nose too, especially when you turn it up when you think you're right. And when you smile, your real smile that starts at your lips and ends at your eyes, I swear it's almost like you've been practising in front of a picture of him! You've got it down to a T!"

Kurt was smiling at him fondly, his eyes twinkling at the incredulous expression on his face.

"What about you?" Drake asked, when he'd recovered enough to find his voice.

"Do I have any of you in me?"

Kurt's smile dimmed, unsure of how to answer this one, but that was when Blaine darted in to his rescue.

"Your dad may say you have me on the outside, Drake, but you're all Kurt on the inside."

Now it was his turn to smile at the surprise in his husband's eyes.

"You're brave and stubborn and kind all at once. You know exactly what you want, and you'll do everything in your power to get it and you never stop until you win in an argument."

He shook a finger in front of both their faces.

"That's Kurt through and through."

Kurt turned a brief indignant gaze on him, but then turned back to his son.

"You see, son? Blood may be what you're born with, but it doesn't necessarily have to define who you are. You get a say in who you choose to be and you'll always be able to find a piece of those you really care about within you. Always remember that, ok?"

Drake nodded, suddenly too choked up to speak and engulfed them both in giant hugs which they were only too glad to return in kind.

But as they drew back, Blaine interjected,

"Speaking of blood, I do believe it's time you made up with the only member of our family you're actually related to!"

He indicated upstairs with a nod of his head.

"Go on. Your sister's been waiting for you."

Drake shot them an apologetic smile and dashed up full speed to barge into Valerie's room to finally make amends with the other half of himself.

And Kurt and Blaine heaved sighs of relief, sagging back against each other, content in the knowledge that even though joined piecemeal, their beloved little family was no longer in danger of being torn apart and that all was well that ended well.

THE END

A/N: Well, that's a wrap folks. Thanks for all those kind enough to follow, fave and review this story. Turned out longer than I'd initially intended it to, but this was the only way I could get in everything that occurred to me. For all those who wish to read more stories about this particular Klaine family, have no fear. I have more short stories on my profile and quite a few lined up, including a multi-chapter sort-of epic which is just a few scenes away from being completed and post-worthy. Hope to see you all aboard for future adventures, and thanks again! ;) LoL.