Author's note: So... yeah. Birthday chapter. I'm not sure if I like it. I want to like it, but it sounds awkward and mostly depressing to me. I did start my senior year and have to take extra driving classes because I'm a terrible driver :P and I don't like either of those things, so maybe that's why this chapter sounds bad :/ I don't know. I still like writing the babies :) Their personalities are so much fun to work with. I'm not sure where I'll be going with my next few chapters. If you have ideas, let me know. They will be going to California soon. I'm thinking next chapter they'll actually be traveling there. For a while they'll be doing random things like playing with the babies, and Blaine will be going to work with Keegan, and Keegan will slowly be learning English. I think that's it, so I hope you guys like it. My updates might not be as frequent, but I will try to get them up as soon as possible. My brother is coming home next weekend, and then I have a wedding to go to, so hopefully I get a lot of writing done this week. Thanks to my lovely Beta for the present ideas :) I think they're adorable.

kathrynevie21: I'm glad you like the baby scenes! I think they're cute :) Hunter is by far my favorite, though. My senior year is alright. I am looking forward to this speech I have to give at the end of the year about a type of family, and I chose to do a child being raised by a gay couple where one or both of the parents is a transvestite :) The speech part of it won't be fun at all, but it's a topic that I'll definitely enjoy talking about, especially since I write about it every day :P

Blaine sometimes remembered when he was younger, those long days of having nothing to do except sitting in his window and watching the other children play. He'd tried to approach them and ignore his shyness if only for a few minutes, but he was always so disappointed when the little boys would slowly back away, confused by his fumbling and stammering. After a few tries and getting nothing out of it except strange looks and some rude laughs as his cheeks turned the brightest red, he'd given up. He didn't like being lonely, but he'd been forced into being alone.

Dragging his feet across the edge of the couch and crossing them, he stared at his lap, unsure where else to look. He slowly lifted his eyes when he heard the prettiest of noises, and he realized that Kurt was singing somewhere else in the house. Turning his head away, he glanced at the walls, all of them covered in pictures of a beautiful baby. Kurt had always been lovely, even as a pudgy baby, and as he slowly got older in every picture, he could be seen posing, or dancing, or giggling.

Blaine didn't understand why Kurt had even noticed him, when no one else did. As the son of a multimillionaire, he was expected to hold his head high, just like his brother did, but all Blaine wanted to do was hide. He realized that he often disappointed his family by running away from what they needed him to be, but his family just didn't understand that he was different.

Pushing his hair off his face, he wrapped his arms around himself and lowered his gaze to his lap again. He was usually always looking down to avoid meeting eyes with someone who wanted to ask him why he was nothing like his successful brother, and he knew that his dad hated that he was afraid to point his nose at the ceiling and face the terrifying world.

He jerked up at the sound of tiny feet patting against the floor, and he pressed his lips together as Kurt slowly padded over to him. Kurt seemed to understand that something was wrong because he tilted his head, his pink lips quivering, "You're sad." He said softly, and Blaine wondered if his emotions were that obvious. He didn't think that he was an open book, and he was suddenly worried that he'd always looked vulnerable.

He shook his head, trying to be sincere because his broken past and family usually bothered him somewhere deep down. He just got distracted by other things—mostly Kurt—and was able to forget about what haunted him for a while. "Sometimes my thoughts get away from me." He muttered quietly, reaching for Kurt and helping him scoot onto the couch. Kurt plopped down by Blaine's hip, his little body resting against Blaine's side. Tucking his head under Blaine's chin, Kurt wrapped his thin fingers around Blaine's hands, pale against his dark skin. "I'm fine."

Kurt laid his lashes on his cheeks, fluttering with every breath he took, "What do you think about?" He finally peeped, opening one eye and peeking up at Blaine. "Do you think about me?"

"Most of the time." Wrapping a loose arm around Kurt, Blaine leaned back on the arm of the couch and stroked Kurt's belly, "Sometimes… I think about how… different I am. I don't fit in anywhere."

"You fit in with me." Kurt moved onto his knees so he could look at Blaine, and he gave him a sweet smile that comforted him, "It's okay that you're different… I don't mind, whatever you want to be." Looking down at his blue dress, he murmured quietly, "Some people think I'm odd because I wear dresses… but you like me, anyway, don't you?"

When Blaine dropped his chin, Kurt's smile widened and he looped his arms around his neck, "We can belong together… just the two of us."

Feeling Kurt wiggle closer to him and lay his head on his chest, Blaine stretched his legs out and mumbled, "Thank you… Kurt. Um… do you want me to read to you tonight?" When Kurt gave him an approving smile, he reached for the book on the coffee table and opened it to the next chapter, "Juliet found herself becoming more and more curious of Romeo, when he only wanted to pull away from her. But they could only think of each other, and it drove Romeo mad that he couldn't only need himself anymore."

Turning the page, Blaine shifted Kurt in his arms so he could see his wide, curious eyes and his slightly puckered lip. He looked very anxious that the chapter might upset him, so Blaine gently smoothed his hair to soothe him. "They found their way back to each other after months of ignoring their feelings, but very soon after that Juliet's protective father heard of their secret friendship. He sent Romeo away, forbidding him from ever speaking to his beloved daughter again, and Juliet cried that she was alone again."

He closed the book and put it aside, keeping his arms around Kurt. Kurt still seemed sad about the very unusual love story, and Blaine regretted making Kurt feel that way because he'd picked the story. He should have just chosen a retelling of The Little Mermaid. "I feel so sorry for Juliet." Kurt dropped his tiny chin, his teary eyes falling to his lap. "Doesn't her daddy know that she's happy with Romeo? If I had children, I would want them to be with whoever they loved. Wouldn't you?"

Blaine had seen overprotective dads before, especially in movies, and part of him could understand the urgent need to protect and care for. The dads never wanted to see their children get hurt, and because he'd been hurt before—plenty of times—he could see how they'd rather have their children at home where they were safe and constantly adored, instead of out in the mean world where they could love the wrong person and end up heartbroken. Glancing at Kurt, who was still bundled up against his chest, he muttered lowly, "Some love stories don't have happy endings."

Blaine took his husband's hand and helped him off the last step of the staircase, hearing his quiet thanks when he put him back down on his toes. Wrapping his arm around Kurt, he saw his pink lips curve into the happiest smile, and he glanced in the direction that he was looking. Both of his babies were sitting in front of the TV, which was showing what Blaine thought was the first Toy Story, and they had their arms around each other. Archer giggled very lowly when Buzz and Woody got into a ridiculous fight, and Hunter tightened his grip. Keegan was lounging behind them, resting on one of his palms and lazily running his fingers through Archer's messy curls.

Kurt left Blaine's side and hurried over to them, giving both of them hugs and kisses, "Happy birthday, my darlings." He said softly, and they grinned at him. Putting his fingers to his lips, Kurt batted his lashes and whispered, "Oh, you're already a year old. You've grown up too fast."

While Keegan sat up and said something to Kurt, Blaine slowly approached his little family and pulled both of his babies to his chest, "Happy birthday, little loves. Are you hungry? Daddy will make you a special breakfast for your first birthday."

Rubbing sleep out of his eyes, Hunter fell against Blaine's chest, "Daddy, I want juice. Can I have some, please?"

"Sure, honey." He reached over for Archer, who was watching Woody and Buzz wander around Pizza Planet, and stroked his small back. "Archer, sweetheart, do you want juice with your oatmeal?"

"I want warm milk." Archer said, scooting closer to Hunter and tucking himself under his chin. "Daddy, can I give Hunner his present now?"

"After lunch, baby." He gave both of his children another kiss before he got to his feet, walking underneath pink and blue streamers to get into the kitchen. He found Carole already in there, and it smelled like she had started on the oatmeal. Stepping around the table, he opened the fridge and pulled out the apple juice and milk. After he poured both into two cups and stuck the milk in the microwave, he leaned against the counter and went over everything he needed to do for the day.

Carole, who had been at the stove and stirring the steaming oatmeal, glanced over at him and smirked, "You look more stressed out than the day those two were born. I know it's their first birthday, but you need to relax. It'll be fine… those babies aren't fussy."

Quirking half of a smile at her, he said lowly, "They just mean everything to me. I want it to be perfect for them." When the microwave beeped, he went over to it and pulled the milk out, "Thanks for making breakfast. I'm just going to give them peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch, so I can make those."

"I've got the cooking today." Carole told him, spooning some oatmeal into two bowls. "You should spend time with them. It'll be perfect to them if you're with them." Handing him the bowls, she grinned at him, "Go out there and watch Toy Story with them. Archer just thinks it's the funniest thing when one of those toys falls over."

Blaine wasn't sure what to do to show her how grateful he was, so he just nodded and turned away. Carefully taking the food and drinks back into the living room, he lowered to the floor beside of Kurt and handed his children their breakfast. He wrapped his arms around Kurt, who seemed just as amused as the babies by the movie, and he kept his eyes on their small heads as they ate. Archer's pudgy cheeks got bigger every time he put the spoon back in his mouth, which made Blaine smirk.

Both of their eyes widened at the end of the movie when Buzz shot up into the sky with Woody and started flying, and Kurt giggled as they stuck their arms out and made flying sounds. After the movie was over, Hunter and Archer played with a few of their toys for a while. Archer had a little doll that looked like Aurora, and Hunter had his teddy bear.

Blaine stayed with Keegan and Kurt, who were having a conversation that Blaine couldn't understand. Kurt laughed a few times and looked at the babies, so Blaine assumed that they were what the conversation was about. He wasn't sure how long it had been, but after a while Hunter toddled back over to him and patted his chest. "Daddy, my stomach's mad at me! It's growling at me." He yelled, which surprised Blaine.

Raising a brow at him, he put his hand under Hunter's shirt and felt his stomach. "Do you have a stomach ache, baby? What's the matter? Daddy will kiss it to make it better." He suddenly felt it rumble under his palm, and he couldn't help but chuckle. "I think you're just hungry. Do you want a sandwich?"

Hunter nodded and hurried back to Archer, whose huge eyes lowered to Hunter's stomach as if he really thought that it was angry. Getting back up, Blaine went into the kitchen where Carole had already set a plate of little sandwiches. He brought them out and set them down by the babies, "Don't eat too many. We're having cake after this, sweethearts."

Archer nibbled on one of the smaller sandwiches, licking the jelly that squirted out of the edges. Both of them crawled over to Blaine, Kurt, and Keegan, and Archer curled up in Blaine's lap, while Hunter squished his face into Kurt's dress.

After he'd finished his sandwich and licked his fingers clean, Archer lifted his blue gaze to Blaine's face, "Daddy, can I please give Hunner his present now? My sandwich is all gone, see?" He held up his dimpled hands, and Blaine grinned and kissed both of them, even though they were sticky and wet.

"Sure, baby." He let Archer go, and he crawled out of his lap. "You've been very good for Daddy."

Carole left the room to get Burt, who had been watching a football game in his room, and Kurt went back upstairs to get their presents to their children. Scooting against the wall and bringing his knees to his chest, Blaine watched Archer waddle over to Hunter with a pink box in his hands.

Once Kurt came back with their birds on his shoulder and a few presents in his hands, Blaine tugged him into his lap. After Carole and Burt sat down on the couch, he let Hunter start opening his gift. All of them had humored smiles on their faces as Hunter struggled to rip his gift apart piece by piece, throwing the tiny shreds of paper aside.

Hunter finally pulled a small box out and opened it, finding two rings inside. He lifted the blue one and twisted it this way and that, then glanced at Archer when he said, "They're wedding rings. Daddy and Père have them because they're in love, and so do Grandma and Grandpa. Married people have each other forever and ever, so we're going to get married today."

Blaine grinned at the sweet gift and Archer's proposal, so much different than his own. "That's very nice, baby. You're the most romantic boy in the world."

Archer's almost toothless smile widened, two dimples popping onto his cheeks. He took a brown ring out and slipped it onto the wrong finger, so Kurt moved closer to him and helped him put it on the right one. After Hunter put his on, Archer clapped his hands and ran over to Blaine, stumbling on his clumsy feet. "Look, Daddy! I'm married like you!" He shoved his little hand in Blaine's face, and Blaine looked at the ring, which had Archer engraved in it with a little heart next to that, and Hunter on the other side of the heart.

Taking Archer into his arms and tickling him, Blaine laughed at his squealing, "Your daddy's not ready for you to move out and get married already."

Archer's eyes widened to the size of saucers, "I want to stay with Daddy!" Lifting his head for a kiss, he grabbed Blaine's hair after he got one. "I'll be married to Hunner because I like him and don't want to hurt his feelings, but I'll still be with Daddy, too."

"Mm…" Blaine kissed Archer's hair, breathing in the scent of strawberry shampoo. "You're Daddy's good baby. Honey, why don't you go see what Hunter has for you? It looks like he wants to give you a gift."

"Hunner!" Archer squirmed from Blaine's grip, tottering over to Hunter. Plopping beside of Hunter, who was still playing with his ring, Archer looked at a piece of paper in his hands. "Did you draw something, Hunner?"

Suddenly curious, Blaine moved closer to them and also glanced at the picture. It was one of a few people holding hands, a very neat picture that had no smudges or smears. Hunter returned his attention to the picture, and he pointed at the people on the end, "That's Grandpa, and that's Grandma." The picture showed Burt with a baseball cap on his head, and Carole with her arm around him. "And that's Uncle Keegan right there… he has Pavarotti and Everett in his hands." He was shown with his blond, curly hair, and turquoise eyes, nothing about him out of place.

Archer pulled the picture closer to himself, and he pointed at the two people in the middle, "That's Père because he has a pink dress, right?" Kurt had a beautiful coif in the picture, not a messy strand of hair on his head, and his pink lips were curved with a gentle smile. "And that's Daddy because he's holding us!" Blaine was a little shorter than Kurt in the picture, with his dark curls hanging over his forehead and a gray jacket covering his shoulders. In his arms were Archer and Hunter, who looked very happy there. They were playing with each other, grinning and laughing.

"I like it, Hunner!" Archer hugged the picture to his chest, unaware that he was probably wrinkling it, and he gave it a kiss. Handing it to Blaine, he asked, "Daddy, can you hang this up when we go home?"

"Of course, honey." Blaine scrubbed Hunter's hair, "Hunter, this is an amazing picture. You're such a good artist. Daddy's so proud of you." He laid the picture on the coffee table, then reached for the other gifts.

Both of them got a few more pairs of pajamas, most of them matching, and clothes and shoes. Blaine bought them new toys and even a tiny oven where they could bake little brownies and cakes without getting burned or hurt.

After they were done with opening their presents, they scrambled into the kitchen to eat their cake. Hunter had done a good job with it because it tasted very good and almost everyone ended up with a second piece.

Kurt and Keegan took them back into the living room to play with their new toys and watch a few more movies before dinner, but Blaine stayed behind with Carole and Burt because his phone was ringing. He wondered if it was the Warblers about something he could start working on from home, but when he pulled it out of his pocket, he was shocked to see that his brother was calling him.

It'd been a few months since he'd heard from him, and he immediately knew why he wanted to talk to him now. He should have been expecting it, but something inside of him made him want to hang up. What was he supposed to tell Coop, that his own child thought his uncle was his dad and he'd let him become completely convinced that he was? What worried him more than facing Cooper's reaction to that, though, was how he could tell Archer that he wasn't his dad.

A low groan rumbled from his throat, and he was aware that Burt and Carole were looking at him and trying to figure out why he wasn't answering. He decided that, even though he hated doing this to his brother, he couldn't let this happen now, not when Archer would still be relying on him for a few more years. Maybe he could tell him later, but not now.

Holding the phone up to his ear, he muttered lowly, "Hello?" He flicked his eyes to the kitchen door, and he met Kurt's wide eyed gaze. Shaking his head as if to tell him that nothing was wrong, he turned his back on him. He couldn't look at Archer, who was in Kurt's arms, with a guiltless expression.

"Hey, little bro!" Cooper almost yelled, making Blaine wince. "It's good to hear your voice. I should have been checking up on you more, but my schedule has been full. I made sure to get time off on my kid's birthday, though. How is he doing? I miss him so much."

Blaine wanted to tell Coop that he'd never even held him, but he kept his mouth shut. He had to force himself to come to terms with the fact that Cooper was Archer's real dad. "He's fine."

Cooper's reply was more hesitant, "You sound so serious. Can I talk to him? You haven't even sent me any pictures of him yet! What's he look like? Is he talking?"

Blaine had another brief urge to tell Cooper that Kurt often said Archer looked like him, but he didn't. Rubbing the nape of his neck, he hit down everything good in him and said, "He just went down for a nap."

It took Cooper a few more minutes to answer, and then he finally said, "Oh. Well… okay. I was just hoping I could talk to my kid on his birthday. I can't believe he's one already." After a moment of having nothing to say and hearing nothing from Blaine, he cleared his throat, "Is he going to wake up soon? I have a meeting in about an hour, but I could leave early."

For a second, Blaine actually felt like he was dying. The breath rushed out of his throat and he squeezed his eyes shut. "No…" he said between two pursed lips, his voice so strangled that he barely got the word out, "don't call back. He won't be up for a while."

"Alright." Coop's voice was flat with disappointment, "I'll let Alicia know. She was looking forward to hearing about him. Uh… let him know that his dad says to have a good birthday, okay? And that I love him?"

"Okay." Blaine said lowly, clicking the call off before he completely collapsed. He wondered if that was one of the worst things he'd ever done, and knew that if he had a baby he wouldn't want anyone to keep him from it.

Ignoring Carole and Burt's raised brows, he stuffed his phone in his pocket and went back into the living room. Kurt and Archer were playing with two dolls, and Hunter was hugging his teddy bear and trying to feed him a leftover sandwich.

Kurt looked up from his little doll and quietly asked Blaine, "Who was that?"

"No one." Blaine shrugged it off, and Kurt went back to playing with his doll, trusting him too easily.

Laying his head in his hand, he stared at Archer, who was babbling to Kurt about his little doll. He looked over at Blaine and reached out for him, a wide smile tugging at his red lips. "Daddy, play with me!" Reaching for another doll, he gave it to Blaine. "That's Cinderella. She's missing her shoe. She's waiting for a prince to give it back."

Blaine looked at the doll's feet, one of them covered in a glass slipper. He held out the doll and tried to play with his husband and Archer, but he was too distracted by the horrid thoughts of how hard it would be to wake up in the morning without their eager kisses on his cheeks, or to walk from room to room without feeling their little fingers sliding through his, or to fall asleep at night without their softs breaths on his neck and their tiny bodies curled up against his heart.