Chapter 8: (June 26th):

A/N: So this is quite a short chapter. But good news! I'm chaperoning (mostly just gaurding the halls of a hotel and being on the scene in case of emergencies) at a conference this weekend for a bunch of kids, which means I have a lot of time to write! So hopefullyyy, I'll have the next two chapters up this weekend. Yay!

My prayers go out to everyone affected by the quake in Japan.

I don't own Glee.


After getting a super early start the next morning, the two boys found themselves boarding their flight and struggling to keep their eyes open. When they took off, Kurt took one last look at the city out of the window and sighed audibly, having had a great trip, but knowing that he would miss some of the things that he had experienced over the last week. Blaine noticed this, and planted a soft kiss on the younger boy's cheek, and whispered a promise to return again in the future. With this reassurance, Kurt lifted the arm rest separating him from his boyfriend and snuggled in against his chest, falling into a much needed sleep.

Hours later, they landed at JFK and ran through the airport, worried that they would miss their connecting flight, only to find out that it would be delayed for at least an hour. Despite the sleep that they got on the plane, the delay and time change was making them both a bit cranky. They both registered that they were tired and that was the reason for their bickering, but it didn't make it any less frustrating. So when Kurt snapped a bit to quickly at Blaine when he accidentally rolled over Kurt's foot with the wheel of the rolling suitcase - Blaine decided that he would take a walk. Even if you are completely in love with someone, being with them for days and days at a time can make you need a bit of space. Blaine wanted to prevent any additional arguments, so he told Kurt that he would be back in a bit and walked away.

But after half an hour of meandering in and out of gift shops, he could not keep his thoughts off of his petite boyfriend. He was walking out of a small book store where he hadn't been able to stop himself from buying Kurt a couple of new magazines and a book that he had mentioned he wanted to read, when some businessman ran by him while talking on his cellphone, and ran over his foot with his huge suitcase. Blaine shouted out in paid and looked at the man - who not only didn't acknowledge that he had hurt anyone - but had started yelling loudly into the phone, making demands.

Blaine winced at the pain in his foot and cursed himself for getting frustrated with Kurt. He ran back to where they were sitting and saw Kurt standing, looking around. He ran up to him and hugged him, and told him that he was sorry for being an overtired idiot and Kurt replied, saying that he had been looking for him, hoping to apologize for being an overtired diva. They laughed and hugged and kissed and everything went back to normal.

Carole and Burt picked them up from the airport, and even though they could only go home for a few hours before having to return to exactly where they were leaving, they all agreed that spending a few hours at home was exactly what they needed. During the ride home from the airport, Carole and Burt both happily asked questions, trying to get details about their trip, but both boys had fallen asleep again before they could get onto the main road.

They spent the day napping and hanging out with Kurt's family (they had decided to spend the time at the Hummel-Hudson house instead of the Anderson house since it was much closer, and Blaine's parents were out of town, anyway). Kurt was excited for trip number two, but he didn't realize how much he needed these few hours of sleep and normalcy until he was there, hugging his Dad, and happily accepting mugs of hot cocoa from Carole.

In passing, Kurt mentioned how much fun the Disney park had been, and quietly offered that it would be fun for the whole family to go sometime in the future. Finn, who had been playing a video game at the time, quickly looked up from the tv and had such an excited look on his face that it made him look ten years younger. There was a flash of sadness in Burt's eyes, and neither Kurt nor Blaine missed it, but once Blaine told them all about the parade and the shows, both Carole and Finn were discussing plans for their perspective trip and Burt couldn't hide the small smile that was on his lips at the sight of his happy family.

After having caught up on some of the rest that they needed, Blaine and Kurt happily joined everyone at the dinner table for a quick meal before they would be jetting off again. When Burt asked Kurt to pass the potatoes, the whole family's eyes flicked toward the golden band that had been previously unnoticed. Burt looked up suddenly at Blaine with fierce eyes, Carole gave the couple a nervous smile and Finn just looked confused. Blaine saw this immediately and quickly explained that it was a promise ring that he had given Kurt for their anniversary. A symbol his commitment to the relationship and to Kurt and his promise to be faithfully his for as long as he would let him.

Having thought that it was a wedding band, Carole and Burt both relaxed a bit after his speech, Carole wiping tears out of her eyes and Burt just quietly looking between the two boys. His expression was nearly unreadable, but after a moment, he reached across the table and shook Blaine hand, smiling a bit, and telling Blaine that he was excited to have him more involved in family events in the future. Blaine let go of the adult's hand and grabbed Kurt's under the table, and thanked him for welcoming him into the family so graciously. Sitting next to Blaine, surrounded by this group of people that he loved, Kurt had never felt more like part of a complete family.