Burt stared in his closet, looking for just the right thing to wear. He knew he should go to Kurt for fashion advice, but he wasn't ready to tell him where he was going. All he knew was that Lindsay was coming over to watch him for a couple of hours while he went out. That was it. No questions asked.
Four days earlier, Jake from the garage was telling him about his sister's friend who got divorced the year before. She was only two years younger than Burt, so he decided to call her. She sounded nice, but he still wasn't so sure about the whole blind date thing. But, he was lonely, and Kurt was desperate to have a mom again, so Burt decided to just see where things went with it.
He looked at his watch and realized he had to get going. Most of the closet was still dominated by Elizabeth's extensive wardrobe. He didn't have the heart to get rid of all of her clothes. He pushed a row of her dresses aside and picked out a dark blue button down shirt. He would skip the flannel for once to make a good first impression. He kept his jeans on but put on nicer shoes instead of his Nikes. He took off his baseball cap and grabbed his wallet before going downstairs. Kurt was at the kitchen table, finishing his homework.
"Hey, kiddo. You gonna be good for Lindsay tonight?" he asked.
"Uh huh. Where are you going?" Burt paused, unsure of how to tell him.
"I'm gonna go have dinner with a friend. I'm only gonna be gone a couple of hours," he said.
"Which friend?" Kurt asked. He wasn't stupid. Elizabeth had been dead six months. He had to be wondering.
"You know Jake, from the garage?" Kurt nodded. "His sister's friend is meeting me to have dinner. We're gonna go to Breadstix."
"Is it a date?" Kurt asked, looking up at him. He sighed and sat in the chair next to him.
"We're just gonna talk, buddy. We're getting to know each other. You have to get to know someone before you decide if you wanna be their friend," he told him. "I should be back in time to put you to bed." The doorbell rang, and Burt got up to go let Lindsay in. He paid her, left her extra money for dinner, and left after hugging his son goodbye. He drove straight to Breadstix and waited for her at the front. Jake had shown him a picture of her so he would be able to recognize her. Her name was Stacey, and she had short black hair and green eyes and was tall and thin. He was beginning to get cold feet, but just then she came through the door.
"Burt?" she asked. He smiled.
"You must be Stacey." They exchanged an awkward hug and sat down in a booth.
This is going well, he thought to himself as they ate their dinner. Stacey was a nurse at Lima Memorial Hospital, and got divorced the year before. She was kind and funny, but not over the top.
"Jake mentioned you have a son?" she asked. Burt smiled. He'd been thinking about him the entire time.
"Yeah, his name's Kurt. He's eight," he said. "Do you like kids?"
"Oh, yes. I used to babysit all the time as a teenager; I still do occasionally. What's he like?" Burt sipped his Pepsi and leaned back in his seat. He really didn't know how to describe Kurt to someone who had never met him.
"He's not like most of the kids his age," he figured. Yeah. Boys his age like cars and trucks and dirt. That's not Kurt. "He likes to sing and dance, and he's timid at first, but then he'll talk your ear off when he warms up to you."
"He sounds sweet. I'd love to meet him sometime." Wait, what? There was no way Kurt would be able to handle meeting Stacey. Sure, she was nice and seemed like she would like him, but Kurt could barely handle of the idea of him going out on a date, much less her coming to meet him. He just wasn't ready for that. He was afraid for a second that he was overreacting, but Kurt was his baby, all he had left, and he couldn't let just anyone come in and be a big part of his life. He was craving for a mom again, but he wasn't ready. Burt was beginning to think he wasn't ready, either. Of course no one would ever replace Elizabeth, but even then it was too soon to even think about dating. He liked Stacey a lot, but they couldn't be in a relationship.
After dinner they went and got ice cream and ended on a good note. He explained to her gently that he just wasn't ready to date yet. Kurt wasn't ready for him to be in a relationship. She said she completely understood and hoped they could just be friends.
As he drove home, he knew he made the right decision. He would have plenty of time to date in the future; he just had to wait until the time was right.
It was 9:30 on a Friday, so Kurt was still awake when he got home. Lindsay was reading to him on the couch.
"Hey, Mr. Hummel," she said, putting the book down.
"Hey, guys. Was he good for you?" he asked.
"Yup. We had a tea party. I was just about to put him in bed after this chapter." Burt smiled and gave Kurt a hug.
"Did you have a good time, kiddo?" he asked. Kurt nodded his head happily. "Good." Lindsay got her things and left, and Burt carried him up the stairs and tucked him in bed.
"How was your date?" Kurt asked him.
"Good. She's really nice, but she's not going to be my girlfriend," he told him. Kurt looked relieved. "She's just my friend. I don't need a girlfriend. I have all I need." Kurt smiled. "Go to bed. I'll see you in the morning." Kurt yawned and nodded. Burt was glad he decided to hold off on entering a relationship. He had to do the best thing for Kurt before he worried about himself. They were going to be just fine by themselves.
Author's Notes:
Thank you so much to everyone who left reviews with ideas for this story! I'm definitely going to be busy writing over the next few days, which is a good thing! I hope you like this chapter, I think it's kind of that moment when burt realizes he has to put Kurt's needs before his, because even though he is lonely and starting to date again, Kurt isn't ready for that, so he has to sacrifice that for him.
So yeah, those are my thoughts on that.