May 2017 - Dublin, Ohio
On Saturday morning, the first weekend in May, Aliza and Rose were in the kitchen helping Carole frost cupcakes for the graduation party they were having that afternoon.
"Mimi?"
"Yes, sweetie?"
"Why do we have to move to New York? I want to stay here in our house. I like it here."
Carole looked her. "You've made lists before of things you'd like to have or do, right? Like for your birthday."
"Mmm hmm."
"Well, I know that your Daddy and Papa have told you this already, but going to school in New York was what your Papa has wanted to do for a very, very long time. And now that the two of you are big enough to go to school too, you're going to go live in New York and your Papa is going to get to go to the school he really wants to go to."
"They told us that, but I don't want to go. I won't get to see you and Papaw and Grandma and Grandpa. And Uncle Sam and Aunt Trina."
"We'll still come visit you. And you'll get to see Wes, David, Nick, and Jeff more often."
"But I want to have sleepovers at your house."
"We'll just have to have sleepovers in New York for a while."
"Can we still make chocolate chip pancakes?"
"Yes."
"Okay. But I still don't want to go."
"You go to Paris every summer and you like that."
"Mémé and Papi are there. And Uncle Marc and Aunt Marie and Madi and Liam. And it's fun there."
"It will be fun in New York too. You just have to give it a chance. You'll meet kids your age when you go to school."
Aliza asked, "Did I do it right, Mimi?" She showed Carole the cupcake she was frosting.
Carole looked over and the frosting was way too thick. "You need to let that cupcake and another one share all of that frosting."
"Okay. Can you help me?"
"Sure, honey."
Kurt came in the room and grabbed his apron. "I'll help you, honey. Watch." He picked up a second cupcake and pressed it against the first one, swiping about half of the frosting off.
Aliza laughed. "The cupcakes kissed."
Kurt smiled. "Now, you spread what's left of the frosting around and I'll do the same." He picked up a small spatula and demonstrated.
She imitated him. "Like this?"
"Exactly like that."
She smiled.
Kurt used a spoon and dipped it into the frosting bowl. "Each cupcake needs this much frosting."
"Okay. I can do that, Daddy."
The two of them frosted the 15 slightly smaller-than-usual cupcakes while Rose and Carole worked on placing the cookies they had baked the weekend before out in rows on the serving trays.
When they finished, Kurt pulled out the package of chocolate letters they had gotten and pulled out the letters they needed and handed them to the girls one by one. A-A-A-D-G-H-I-N-O-P-P-R-T-U-Y. They put one letter in the center of each cupcake.
"What's it spell?" Rose asked.
"Well, nothing yet. We have to get them in the right order first." He began rearranging them in the center of the island. HAPPY GRADUATION. He said it out loud.
"What's graduation? I forgot." Aliza said.
Carole answered. "It means that your Papa and Daddy finished studying all of the classes they needed to."
"But Papa is going to school in New York. I don't understand." Rose said.
Kurt did his best to explain how there were different levels of school, but Rose just looked lost. "All I can say is that one day it will make more sense. But this is a day for me and Papa, Aunt Trina, Uncle Sam, Uncle Jeff, and Uncle Nick to have a party because we finished our classes."
"Okay. I like parties," Aliza said. "Can I eat one cookie now?"
"Sure, honey." Carole handed her one from the container that had the leftover cookies in it. "Do you want one too, Rose?"
"Yes, please."
Carole gave her one as well. "After you finish them, go wash your hands."
"And then we're going to the movie?" Rose asked.
"To see Tinker Bell," Aliza added.
"Yes to both of you."
They scurried off to the bathroom and washed their hands and came right back.
"We're ready," Rose said.
"Haven't you seen Tinker Bell like 15 times?" Carole teased them. "They're showing Smurf something at the big theater."
"No, Mimi. We love Tinker Bell. We don't like Smurfs," Rose stated emphatically.
"I'm teasing. Let's go watch Tinker Bell at the library. Go get Papaw from the back yard."
The girls brought Burt back in and the four of them left for the library.
Kurt went out back to look for Sebastian when he didn't follow Burt in. He found him sitting out on the porch swing. When he saw Kurt come out the door, he winked at him and patted the seat. Kurt sat down and slipped his shoes off. He repositioned himself by pulling his legs up onto the swing. He laid his head on Sebastian's thigh. Sebastian slid his hand down and put it on Kurt's waist.
"I'm going to miss this," Sebastian said.
"Me too."
"Five minutes and we'll go in and pack the girls' stuff."
"Sure."
"Now that it's time to go, I'm doubting my decision. I heard Rose earlier. I side-stepped into the laundry room to get my crying under control."
"What did she say?"
"That she doesn't want to go to New York. We explained it to them, but they don't understand. Rose tried to get Carole to explain it to her again. She tried, but I could tell that they don't get it."
"I know they don't. I tried to explain graduation and she asked why you had to go to school again if you just finished."
"We're disrupting everything they've ever known just because I want to go to Columbia."
"The program at Columbia is really good. It will make you a lot more marketable, so you can get a job doing what you want to do."
"What I want to do is be with you and the girls. They're growing up so fast. It feels like it wasn't that long ago that they were turning one. And now Rose is four and Aliza is almost four. I love all of you so much and moving to New York is going to pull all of us apart. I'll be in school, and so will the girls. It's just going to be so different."
"We can do this. It will be difficult because we're changing everything, but that doesn't mean that we can't do it."
"We won't have any time just the two of us."
"We will make time for each other, Bas. The girls still go to bed at 8:00. You'll just have to use all of your time before 4:00 to get as much of your schoolwork done as possible. We've been juggling parenthood and college ever since we've been together. What's really bothering you?" Kurt turned over onto his back and looked up at Sebastian.
He moved his hand and slid it under Kurt's ear and ran his thumb along Kurt's jaw. "I'm scared that I won't be able to be the husband and father I want to be. I'm used to eating lunch with you on campus and getting home at 3:00 and having time with the girls before they go to bed." He sighed. "I'm just scared."
"It's okay to be scared. We have three weeks between now and moving in. And we're going to spend all three weeks together."
"I know. I'm looking forward to that. Our five minutes are up. We need to get inside. Your parents came early so we could get stuff done, not so we could sit out here."
Kurt sat up and put his shoes back on. Sebastian stood, waiting for him, and hugged him as soon as he stood up. He loosened his hold on Kurt and kissed him.
"Thank you."
Kurt looked confused. "For what?"
"For always being here for me."
"You're always here for me too, but you're welcome. I love you. Come on. We've got clothes to pack."
Sam and Trina showed up before Burt, Carole, and the girls got back. Sebastian let them in and put them to work making sub sandwich platters while they got out the salads. By the time they got everything out, Nick and Jeff had shown up. A few minutes later, Daniel and Lia showed up with Dotty and Richard. Wes and David arrived right after Burt, Carole, and the girls.
Everyone stood around in the kitchen waiting to eat.
Burt spoke up. "We're here to celebrate the graduations of Kurt, Sebastian, Trina, Sam, Nick, and Jeff."
Everyone clapped.
"So, in their honor, let's eat all of this delicious food." Burt chuckled.
Kurt rolled his eyes at his dad's antics. "Line forms here," he said while holding up a plate with a graduation cap on it.
He and Sebastian made plates for the girls first and handed them to Carole, who took the girls outside while Kurt and Sebastian made their own plates. The recent graduates went through the line after them. They all enjoyed their time together. When the girls finished eating, they played in their playhouse until Nick and Jeff finished and put them in the swings and pushed them.
After everyone had finished eating, each of the graduates stood up and told what their plans were.
"Nick and I will be staying in New York to look for jobs. If we don't manage to find anything by the end of the summer, we'll have to reconsider our options."
"Trina and I will be staying here in Columbus. We've got teaching positions for the fall lined up already, not at the same school, but in the same district, so we'll at least have the same days off."
When Sam sat down, Wes said, "Congratulations on finishing in three years."
"Thanks. I just didn't want to drag it out. I had already spent an extra year in high school so I went to school two summers to make up for starting late, well, doubly late."
Kurt stood up. "You all already know that Sebastian will be attending Columbia in the fall. I have had two interviews, but I'm waiting to hear back this next week. I'm not saying what it's for until I hear back. When Isabelle saw that I was moving back to New York, she offered me a position at Vogue dot com again. I'm hoping to get a professional position, but since we are just going for a year, I will accept her offer if I can't get a professional position there. I'd rather be employed than not. We picked out a pre-school for the girls a couple of years ago and they've been accepted for the fall. It's a bilingual school. They'll attend four hours each day from 8 to noon."
"A couple of years ago?" Burt asked.
"The list to get in good pre-school is long, and you can apply at birth. We were lucky to get a spot since we applied the fall after the girls turned one. When we did the phone interview, the fact that the girls were already completely bilingual is what got them spots over the other potential candidates. They need kids who already speak both languages."
"Well, I'll be. I never heard of anything like that. I'm glad you got the school you wanted."
"So are we." He changed the topic. "Who's ready for dessert?"
Daniel, Lia, Richard, and Dotty left first. After that, Kurt and Sebastian put the girls carry-ons in Carole's car and gave all four of them hugs.
"We'll see you tomorrow at the airport," Kurt said.
They waved as they pulled out of the driveway.
"Go distract Trina for five minutes and then bring her to the study."
"Got it." He pecked Kurt on the lips and went to get Trina.
Kurt got Sam to follow him into the study and gave him an envelope.
"What's this?"
"A graduation gift."
"This was a 'no gift' party."
"The party's over."
Sam huffed and smiled while shaking his head. "Of course." He opened it and smiled when he read what it said. he opened the second envelope inside the card. He looked up shocked. And looked at it again to make sure that he had read it right. "You did not buy me a ticket to Paris."
"I did actually. You leave next Sunday, Trina too of course. I mean you have been married for a year and you've never been on a honeymoon yet either."
"We live in a giant house that we have all to ourselves quite frequently. It has a pool and a jacuzzi."
"That's a good point, but nonetheless, Trina knows about this. She has a ticket too. You both have jobs lined up for the fall. Trina has arranged everything. We've wanted you to come with us every summer, but you worked two jobs the first summer, and then you took a full semester's worth of classes the last two summers. It's time for some fun."
"Fine, fine. You win. You already bought the ticket and you got my wife to sneak around and plan everything with you."
"She loves me."
"I know. I love you too." He pulled Kurt into a hug. "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Trina came in the room and saw the end of the hug. "So we're all set then?" She walked in and wrapped her arms around Sam and leaned into him. "You're not actually mad are you?"
"No. It's just that Kurt has paid for so much of my school stuff already. It just feels lopsided."
"I've explained that several times. The money had to be used for 'my schooling' or it would be lost. I just bought things for myself that were school-related that I didn't actually end up needing, and I passed them along to you."
"Which I appreciated, of course. It's just that the ticket seems like too much."
"You wouldn't let us pay either of you for watching the girls the last three and a half years. I'm sure that the number of times you watched them equals more than one plane ticket."
"I already said I'll go."
"I want you to go and not feel indebted to me."
"I'll work on that."
"So we're all set then?" Sebastian asked when he came in.
"We are. Now, to get all of the girls' stuff packed quickly. The boxes are in the garage. The moving company will be here in two hours."
"Jeff and Nick are already disassembling the girls beds," Sebastian said. "Let's go get the boxes, Sam."
"Sure thing." He pecked Trina on the lips and followed Sebastian.
Kurt and Trina headed into the playroom.
After the moving truck had left, the six of them sat around and ate leftovers from the party for dinner. After they finished eating, Sebastian packed up the rest of the leftovers and what little food was left in their pantry, freezer, and refrigerator into a box and put it on the island. Kurt looked through every room in the house one last time. The other four went outside to move the porch swing and the girls' swings into the garage.
Everyone met back up in the kitchen.
"I think that's it," Kurt said. "We have our stuff packed for Paris and we boxed up everything else we need in New York and sent it on the truck already."
"Thanks for all your help," Sebastian said. "Let's get our luggage in Trina's car."
Kurt stopped before getting in and looked back towards the house. Sebastian was setting the alarm. As he watched him, a wave of sadness passed through him that was accompanied by a bit of excitement as well. He and Aliza had found love in this house, but he knew that wherever Sebastian was would always be his home.
He was caught up in his thoughts when Sebastian hugged him. "Ready?"
Kurt startled a bit, but quickly wrapped his arms around Sebastian. "Yes."
New York, New York
They opened the door to their flat late that night. They went to the girls' room first to have a look. They had persuaded the owner to allow them to hire a professional company to paint the girls' room. They had also asked for the furniture in the room to be removed for the year that they'd be renting the place.
"It looks great," Kurt said. "One pink, one lavender, one pale green, and one turquoise wall – just like the girls asked for."
"It looks really good. Let's go shower and make the bed. We have to be up early."
The next morning, the moving truck arrived at 8:00, and by 9:00, everything was unloaded. Kurt and Sebastian worked to reassemble the girls beds and unbox their play kitchen, grocery store, and restaurant.
Sebastian looked around the room. "At first, It's going to be strange for them having their toys in the bedroom, but this room is bigger than their rooms at home."
"It will be an adjustment because they've not had access to their toys when it's time to sleep, but I think they'll be okay."
The buzzer sounded. Sebastian went to answer it.
They went down to the lobby to meet the delivery men who had the bookcases they had ordered for the girls' room. Kurt and Sebastian each carried one up while the delivery men brought up the other two. Sebastian walked them back down to the lobby.
Kurt was putting their sea animal plushies out on the shelves when Sebastian came back. He started emptying their box of books onto the bottom shelf of each bookcase. "These look so weird."
"I know, but we can't mount anything to the walls and these won't tip with them being short. Plus, they fit under the windows." He put the last of the plushies out and helped Sebastian finish putting their books out. "Well, that's the last of their stuff," Kurt said. "Let's go tackle ours."
Sebastian wrapped his arms around Kurt and buried his nose into Kurt's neck. "We can take the boxes down to the reuse and recycling area after we finish, and then go out for a nice big brunch." He kissed along Kurt's neck, along his jaw, and to his lips. "Or we could go make out for a while, and then empty more boxes."
"Tempting. Very tempting."
"I know. We have to keep our schedule." He kissed him once more. "Boxes and more boxes."
Two hours later, they stepped outside the building. Kurt looked up. "I wanted to live in Midtown when I lived here the last time. It's definitely different, but it will be an adventure." He took Sebastian's hand and interlaced their fingers.
"Everything's an adventure with you." Sebastian stepped closer and kissed him.
JFK Airport – CDG Airport
At 6:00, they checked their luggage in in Terminal 1 and headed to Terminal 8 to meet Burt, Carole, and the girls. Burt and Carole stayed behind and took a connecting flight to DC. After hugging Burt and Carole again, they took the girls back to Terminal 1 to wait for their 7:00 flight.
Paris
The girls had slept most of the way there and were able to make it to the taxi before they fell back asleep. Kurt and Sebastian carried them in and let them sleep until noon Paris time before they got them up for lunch.
Marie called Madeleine and Liam out of school the rest of the week so that they could spend more time with their cousins since they were only going to be there for two weeks while school was still in session.
Monday morning of their second week, Kurt was awakened by a quiet knock on their bedroom door.
Kurt got up and slipped his pajama pants on and opened the door.
"Daddy?"
"Yes, sweetie?"
"Are we going to Disneyland today? You said the day Madeleine and Liam went to school. I just looked and Madi's not here."
"We are going. I laid out clothes for you and Aliza. You can go get your clothes and bring them in here and Papa will help you get dressed. Then, you can help me wth breakfast. We're not leaving for an hour, so be quiet when you get your stuff and let Aliza sleep more, okay?"
Rose nodded her head and went to get her clothes.
Kurt slipped back into bed with Sebastian, who was awake, but hadn't moved yet. "Good morning, Bas." He kissed him gently.
Sebastian hummed. "Good morning. I'm really excited. We've been waiting three years to take the girls. I think I'm more hyped up than they are."
"They're going to love it." He leaned forward and kissed Sebastian again. "I have to get dressed. Rose will be back in a minute." He ran his thumb across Sebastian's cheek and kissed him once more before he got up and headed into the bathroom.
"I'll wait for Aliza to wake up or get her up. I'll bring our bags down and make sure we've got everything we need."
"Thanks. Those bags have served us well. Starting on four years and still going strong," Kurt teased as he stepped into the bathroom.
Sebastian helped Rose get her outfit on while Kurt was in the bathroom. As soon as he came back into the room, she turned in a circle.
"I love my Tinker Bell outfit, Daddy. It's perfect."
He looked at her in the overall romper and smiled before picked her up and hugged her. "I'm glad you like it."
"I saw Rose's outfit. She's going to love hers too."
He sat her back down and they went downstairs. Kurt made breakfast while Rose set the table. Kurt texted Sebastian letting him know that everything was done before he plated their food and put it on the table.
"Run up and put your boots on, sweetie."
"Okay, Daddy."
She and Aliza came running back into the room together. Kurt looked down at their feet and smiled remembering how proud Madeleine had been of her pink zip-up boots the first year they had visited. They had been her signature look for the past three years, and she had been the girls' fashion influence that spring. They had both gotten boots "just like Madi's" on Rose's birthday. Kurt had bought pink leopard print laces for Rose and pink zebra print laces for Aliza so that they could tell their boots apart. They had brought a pair of pink on pink camo laces for Madi, which she loved and switched out immediately.
Kurt came back to the present when Aliza called his name. "Daddy?"
"Yes, honey?"
"I love my new outfit. I especially like how it twirls and the ruffly straps."
"I'm glad you like it, honey. Sit down so we can eat."
"Where's my banana?" she asked.
Sebastian stood up. "I'll get it." He grabbed two off the top of the fridge and gave one to each of them.
"Will we get to meet Tinker Bell?" Rose asked.
Kurt nodded. "If she's there today, we'll be sure to find her."
Rose looked down at her outfit. "She's going to like our outfits, won't she?"
Sebastian answered. "I'm sure she will. Daddy did an amazing job making them for you."
Aliza looked down at her nearly thigh-length babydoll top. "Mine's a twirly shirt."
"I like my overalls. And we both have Tinker Bell. Mine is green and a little bit pink and purple. And yours is purple and pink and a little bit green."
"And I have purple shorts."
"Good job naming all of the colors. Finish eating please, so we can go," Kurt reminded them. He smiled remembering all of the games they had played to learn their colors, which was something they had to know to get accepted into the pre-school.
As soon as Rose finished her eggs, she asked, "Can we eat our bananas on the way?"
Sebastian said, "Just put your plates and cups in the dishwasher and eat them while we finish up."
They both hopped up and put their dishes in. They ate their bananas quickly and tossed the peels out.
"We're done," Rose said.
"Go wait by the door. We'll be right there," Kurt said.
Sebastian grabbed their stuff and put it in the dishwasher and turned it on. Kurt picked up a bag he had put on the counter and went into the living room with it.
As Sebastian entered the living room, Kurt was saying, "Close your eyes." He pulled two hats out of the bag he had hidden them in. "Okay, now open them."
Aliza grabbed for the hat that was made out of a small purple print fabric that coordinated with her top and would go with all of her clothes. It was in between a bucket-styled hat and a wider brimmed sunhat. "It's awesome." She put it on and looked at Rose.
Kurt smiled hearing Aliza quote Sam's still-favorite adjective.
Rose took the baseball cap made out of the coordinating fuchsia fabric that went with her overalls romper and the rest of her clothes. "It's perfect!" She put it on. "I need my hair fixed first." She took it back off. "Did you make our hats too?"
"I did."
"Daddy makes you amazing stuff, doesn't he?"
"He does. You do too. You drew our playhouse."
Aliza said, "And Uncle Sam built it with you."
Kurt rolled the hairband off his pinky and braided her hair into a single braid and helped her get the hat back on so that her braid was through the hole in the back. She ran off to look at herself in the mirror.
"Daddy, I want two braids like Anna."
Kurt slipped two purple hairbands off his other pinky.
"Good job, honey." Kurt quickly braided Aliza's hair, and she put her hat on and went to look in the mirror as well.
"We're ready," Rose announced as they came out of the bathroom holding hands.
Kurt and Sebastian grabbed their bags and slipped them on crossbody. Sebastian opened the door and the girls scurried out. Kurt paused long enough to peck Sebastian on the lips, which made him smile. He locked the door and took Kurt's hand. Aliza and Rose held hands and walked in front of them to the Metro station. They broke apart and each took one of their parent's hands on the way down to the platform. Once they were on the train, Kurt pulled out a folded map of Disneyland that he had printed off the internet and let the girls look at it.
When they got off the train, Kurt paused and pulled his phone out, texted someone, and put it back quickly. He picked Rose up to catch up to Sebastian. He put her back down once they did. They walked towards the entrance, but Kurt veered to the right just a bit.
Rose froze in her tracks. "Uncle Sam and Aunt Trina!" She ran and jumped into Sam's arms. "How did you get here?"
Sam said, "In a plane, same as you."
Rose rolled her eyes. "I'm glad you're here."
"Me too. Me too." Aliza said as she wrapped her arms around Trina. "Look at the outfits Daddy made us." She stepped back and spun in a circle.
Sam put Rose down "They're awesome," he said as he watched Rose turn around. "Are you ready to go in?"
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" the girls chanted in unison while jumping in place.
Kurt walked up to Sam and hugged him and then Trina. "We're glad you're here."
"I know I'm stubborn. But we're here now. Let's go in."
"We're going to find Tinker Bell," Rose said, as she pulled Sam along.
"I want to meet Jasmine," Trina said.
"Okay," Rose said. "We'll look for her too."
Aliza tugged on Trina's arm. "I want to see all the princesses."
That week, Sam and Trina spent their days until mid-afternoon with Kurt, Sebastian, and the girls visiting different tourist spot that they wanted to see. It was the first time the girls actually enjoyed any of the sight-seeing. They went to the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Montmartre, L'Opera Garnier, the aquarium, and the zoo
Sam and Trina spent the late afternoons and evenings doing things together as a couple while Kurt and Sebastian spent time with their family.
The third week, the six of them toured different areas of France and visited castles together. When the week was up, they said their goodbyes. Sam and Trina went back to Ohio. Kurt, Sebastian, and the girls headed to New York City.
New York, New York
They arrived at their new apartment at 6:00 NY time, which was midnight in Paris. Kurt and Sebastian showed the girls to their room first. They looked around and examined everything.
"We'll let you to play for a bit, and then it will be time for bath. We'll read and you can go to sleep." Kurt was hoping to be able to keep them away for at least an hour so they wouldn't wake up at 4am. "I have to go set up my new office tomorrow, which means you two will be coming with me because Papa has to go to his new school for a little while. He'll meet us a little later."
"When do we go to school?"
"The day after tomorrow."
"Okay," she opened the closet and looked inside. "It's empty."
"We have your summer clothes in the suitcases and your winter clothes from last year are too small. We'll buy you new ones when it starts to get cold in the fall."
"I want my Tinker Bell jacket," Rose said and started to cry, clearly overtired.
"Sweetie, your Tinker Bell jacket is in the suitcase. It still fits, remember?"
She nodded and wiped her eyes.
"I'm going to go run their bath," Sebastian said. "Just pick one book. Aliza is nearly asleep sitting up. They're never going to make it another hour."
Twenty minutes later they had the girls in bed.
After they got in bed, Kurt snuggled into Sebastian's side. "We're here."
"We are." Sebastian ran his hand down Kurt's arm. "It feels surreal still. I look out the windows and I see high rises instead of grass."
"It's a strange feeling for me too. It's like coming back to a place where everything and nothing is the same."
"That's how I felt the first time went to Paris. Everything and nothing was the same." He placed a gentle kiss on the top of Kurt's head. "One year."
Kurt slid up a little and kissed Sebastian. "I know the girls will be out of sorts for a few days. Readjusting their sleep patterns plus adjusting to living in a new place. The room divider and desk will be here tomorrow. We can rearrange the furniture in here and get our study area set up."
"We need to sleep or we'll be out of sorts," Sebastian teased. "Mona will be here at 8:00."
"I know." He kissed Sebastian gently. "I love you." He scooted back down and got comfortable.
""I love you too." He moved his arm a bit. "Better?"
"Everything's better with you."
When Kurt shut the door to the flat, Rose threw herself down and began to cry. "I don't want Mona. I want Amaline."
Kurt sat down next to her. "Amaline went back to Paris. You saw her there. We went to her apartment for lunch. She and her husband moved back last week."
"No!"
"It's true."
Aliza began to cry as well.
"I want to pack," Rose said as she stood up. "I want to go back to Paris right now." She stomped her foot. "I want Amaline."
"Me too," Aliza said. "I want Amaline."
Sebastian opened the door and took in the scene. Kurt was seated on the floor. Rose was standing glaring at Kurt with her arms crossed. Aliza was crying on the sofa. He picked Aliza up and sat down on the sofa with her on his lap. He patted the seat next to him.
"No!"
Kurt got up and sat on the other end of the sofa, leaving the spot in the middle open for Rose. "Rose and Aliza are upset because they miss Amaline." Kurt explained.
Sebastian spoke calmly. "We can Skype with Amaline at lunchtime. She misses both of you too. We can see her when we go to France again in a couple of months. But until then, you can talk to her like you do Mémé, Papi, Aunt Marie, Uncle Marc, Madeleine, and Liam."
Rose climbed up on the couch and into Kurt's lap. She cried for a few minutes while Kurt held her. "I'm sorry I screamed, Daddy. I just really miss Amaline."
"I know, sweetie. It's hard when all of the people you love don't live in the same place. I accept your apology. And I forgive you. I'm not angry with you." He held her close and wrapped his arms around her. "We've been Skyping with Mona all week. We interviewed three other people and you liked Mona the best."
"I know. I do. I just miss Amaline. And Madi."
"It's okay to miss people, but it's not okay to be mean to Mona or not listen to her," Sebastian said.
"I know. I'll be nice."
"Me too," Aliza said. "I like Mona. She's fun. She likes Tinker Bell too."
Kurt squeezed Rose. "Come help me do the laundry. We need to get all of our clothes clean and ready for this week. Plus, after we talk to Amaline, we're going to go see my new office. And Papa is going to go to his school for a while. He needs to buy his books. When we get back, we're going to set up our office."
"We don't have an office. There's only two bedrooms."
"Well, just like you and Aliza had to combine your playroom and your bedroom, we're going to have to combine our bedroom and our office."
"Okay. Can I throw the clothes into the washer?"
"Yes, and Aliza can help too."
"I want new books to read, like Papa," Aliza said. "I want to go to the library."
"Papa can find where the closest one is while the three of us start the laundry."
Kurt stepped into the building with a bit of trepidation. It had been four years since he had last been there. He made his way to Madame Tibideaux's office. He checked in with her secretary and sat down on a double seat and had the girls sit with him.
He took their Kindles out of his bag and gave them to them while they waited. "When we go inside, you'll need to sit quietly, okay?"
They both nodded.
Kurt's name was called about ten minutes later. He stood up and the girls followed him inside. They sat down together in the chair next to his.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Hummel." She paused. "My apologies. Mr. Hummel-Smythe."
"Good afternoon, Madame Tibideaux."
She looked over at the girls. "What are your names?"
"Rose Alexandra Hummel-Smythe."
"Aliza Grace Hummel-Smythe. I'm almost four."
"I'm already four."
"It's nice to meet the two of you." She switched to French. "What do you two have in your hands?"
Rose answered, "It's a Kindle. We have lots of storybooks on them. And we have a few games that teach us words. We have one game where we can draw and paint too." She stood and walked around Madam Tibideaux's desk and showed her the book she had been reading in the waiting room.
"I read that book when I was little."
Rose's eyes got big. "Really?"
"Most certainly."
"Do you want to read it with me?"
"I would love to, but I need to tell your father a few things right now."
"Okay." Rose sat back down.
"Thank you for coming in today. I have the key to your office." She slid it across her desk. "Professor Clifton won't be in until the second summer session. The two of you can work out the use of the space when he gets back."
Kurt reached forward and took the key. He slipped it on his keyring while she continued to speak.
"As agreed upon, you will be teaching French 1 this session and French 2 next session. In addition, you will be teaching the Working with Child Actors elective course both sessions. The class size is being kept at a maximum of ten to both keep from overwhelming the children who come in to participate and to give the students enough time to actually work with the children."
Kurt nodded.
"As adjunct faculty, you will not be eligible for benefits, but you will be afforded use of the facilities, such as the stage combat training room, the dance studio, the practice rooms, and the library."
"Thank you."
"When you leave, stop down where you obtained your student ID so that you can get a faculty ID card. Despite it being a holiday, that office is staffed today. Welcome to NYADA."
"Thank you." He stood.
When the girls saw him get up, they stood up as well. Rose said, "I like the thing you wear your hair up in. It's very colorful. I don't know what it's called."
Kurt saw her wink at them.
"It's a turban."
"I like your turban too. And your dress." Aliza said.
"Thank you. I'm imagining that your father created the lovely outfits that the two of you are wearing."
They both nodded.
Rose said, "We got to meet Tinker Bell."
"I'm sure that was exciting."
They both nodded.
Kurt reached towards them. "Let's go, girls. Madame Tibideaux has other people waiting to see her." He corralled them towards the door.
They turned back and waved.
The three of were halfway down the hall headed towards the building where Kurt's office was located when Kurt looked up and saw Rachel walking towards them.
She saw him, but did a double-take. "Kurt?" she called out, as she continued towards them.
He stopped. "Rachel."
She stopped a few feet in front of him. She looked between the two girls, who were holding hands with Kurt.
He saw her confusion when she saw that both girls had medium brown hair, light skin, and were the same height. Neither had brown eyes. He nipped it in the bud. "Rachel, these are my daughters Rose and Aliza Hummel-Smythe." He raised each hand slightly as he introduced them.
"Rose and Aliza, this is Rachel. She and I went to high school together."
"Like Uncle Sam?" Rose asked.
"Yep, just like Uncle Sam."
"You know Uncle Sam?" Aliza asked.
"I do. I haven't seen him in quite a while, but we did all go to the same high school."
"She knows your Papa too."
"Does she know Aunt Trina, Uncle David, Uncle Wes, Uncle Jeff, and Uncle Nick too?" Rose asked.
"She has met David, Wes, Jeff, and Nick, but they all went to the school that Papa went to and I went to for a short time. She has not met Aunt Trina."
Rose told her "Aunt Trina married Uncle Sam. We were the flower girls and we got to wear fancy dresses that Daddy made us."
"That sounds like fun," Rachel said.
"It was," Aliza said.
"Are you re-enrolling at NYADA?" she asked him.
He pulled out his new ID. "Adjunct Professor."
"Oh, wow. No one has heard from you in since you left–"
He raised an eyebrow and gave her an ice glare that he hadn't used in years, which put an immediate end to her speaking. "Were you on your way somewhere?"
"Actually, yes."
"If you want to talk, meet me at the café across from the Conde Nast building at 4:00. Sebastian is meeting me at 3:00 to take the girls back home."
"I'll see if I can."
"I'll wait until 4:15. We need to get going."
"We're going to see Daddy's office here and his office at Vogue," Rose offered.
"That's sounds exciting. It was nice to meet the two of you."
The girls waved as Kurt started to walk again.
"Aren't you two just beautiful?" Isabelle said. "I love the Tinker Bell outfits."
The girls preened. "Daddy made them," Rose said.
"I figured he did. Your daddy is very good at designing things and I'm very excited to have him back working here."
Both girls smiled at her.
Aliza said, "We met Tinker Bell."
Isabelle feigned shock. "Was she as amazing as she seems?"
"She was. But she forgot her pixie dust," Rose said.
Isabelle sighed. "I forget things sometimes too."
Kurt's phone pinged in his pocket. "That will be Sebastian. I'll take the girls down and come right back up."
"Nonsense." She picked her phone and called down to the front desk to tell them to let Sebastian come up. "Tell him to give his name at the desk and pick up a visitor's pass. We'll go meet him down at the elevator."
When the elevator opened, Sebastian was surprised. "Isabelle?"
Isabelle looked confused.
Kurt looked at both of them sternly.
Isabelle smiled at the girls and said, "Come this way. Let's get out of the hallway."
Kurt led them down to his office. He ushered Aliza and Rose inside. "You two can just sit on the floor and play a tic tac toe. We'll be right back and then we'll show you around. I need to do one thing really quickly." He pulled their Kindles back out of his satchel.
"Okay, Daddy."
He pulled the door closed and stepped across the hall into Isabelle's office.
"You're Analise's son. I haven't seen you since your parents came for some conference when you were a baby. How did you recognize me?"
"They were photos from when she was in college at NYU. She had photos of the two of you together at several sorority events with your first name is on the back, but no last name. There were other casual shots with you in them. I had no idea you worked here."
"Well, I'll be. It's a small world. I went to elementary and middle school with your dad in Columbus. Then he went to Dalton for high school. I realized who he was when Analise introduced us at a dance. How are they?"
"They died in a car accident a while back."
"Oh, Sebastian. I'm so sorry to hear that. Your mom was the sweetest person."
"She was. We don't talk about it around the girls. They're too young to understand. They call my grandparents 'Grandma and Grandpa' like I do."
"I get it. Shall we get them and take them on the brief tour?"
Kurt nodded. He reached out for Sebastian's hand. He opened the door to his office. "Let's go, girls."
"Yay!" Rose said as she hopped up.
Both of them handed their Kindles back and followed Kurt out.
As they started down the hall, Isabelle said, "I think I have just the thing for the two of you."
By the time they left, the girls each had a mini Guess backpack. Aliza chose bright purple and Rose chose bright pink. Georges shortened the straps and put new holes in them while they waited. Once he was finished, Isabelle thanked him.
She knelt in front of them and reached out to Kurt for their Kindles. "Now you two will have some place to put your Kindles." She slid the top open and put Aliza's in and shower her how to pull it shut and close it with the magnetic snap. She had her turn and showed her how to slip it on by herself. She did the same thing with Rose's. She stood up and looked at them. "They're just right." She had them stand facing each other in front of Kurt and Sebastian and took a photo of them. She took a second one with just the two girls. "Perfect."
"Thank you, Isabelle," Aliza said. "I like my purple backpack."
"Thank you," Rose said with a big smile on her face, trying to look over her shoulder at her bag.
"You're both very welcome. Come back and see me sometime."
Sebastian took their hands and led them down the hall to the elevator. They waved when the elevator door opened.
"I was impressed with you before. Now, I'm doubly impressed. You finished your Master's and you're an amazing dad."
Kurt felt as giddy as he had the day she had hired him the first time. "Thank you."
"Let's get that paperwork in my office signed so you'll be official again. Then you can head down to get your ID before you go."