Happy Saturday!

I hope you all had a nice week. Thank you for your reviews and tweets for the last chapter.

I own nothing! Enjoy!

It took Blaine a few days to get over the allergy incident. He became obsessed with checking the ingredients in every single package of food and cleaning his apartment so thoroughly it would have been hygienic to eat off the floor. He felt so guilty about what had happened, that he needed to make sure that, no matter what, he wouldn't have to rush Max back to the hospital for the same reason ever again.

Both Daniel and Kurt kept telling him that there was no reason to be so worried, but he didn't listen. There was nothing that could make him stop.

Until one thing distracted him just enough.

Blaine would never forget the date: it was the second day of February. He was mopping the kitchen floor before going to work, Kurt watching Max in the living room, balancing his right leg where it was crossed over his left one, lazily sipping on his coffee and thinking of a paper due later that week. And then he glanced at Max to check on him, and his eyes widened. He almost spilled his coffee.

"Blaine! Blaine, get in here right now!"

There was a sound, like the mop bucket had spilled all over the floor, and then Blaine rushed into the living room, panicked. "What? What is it?"

Kurt already had his phone out, pointed in front of him. "Look. Look."

Blaine followed his gaze, confused by the broad smile on Kurt's face, and gasped in surprise.

Max was standing on his own two legs. He was focused on a DVD box he was holding, looking at the pictures in it, and not paying attention at this amazing new thing he was doing. Then he seemed to have noticed he had an audience, because he turned to look at them and fell on his butt.

"Oh my god," Blaine chuckled. He went right towards him and held him, hugging him tight. "Look what you did! Look what you did, big boy!"

"See if he can do it again!" Kurt exclaimed, excited, still pointing at them with his phone.

Blaine placed Max on the floor and slowly backed away to give him room. Max looked at him like he was insane. "Okay, come on now, Max." He smiled. "Come on. You can do this."

"Go, Max," Kurt said, bouncing a little on his feet, unable to contain his joy.

Max glanced at them, as if trying to decide which voice to follow.

"Come stand behind me, Kurt," Blaine said, gesturing at him to hurry.

"Oh look at him. He almost looks taller like this," Kurt cooed, as he crouched right behind Blaine.

"Shush, you're going to distract him. Let's just wait to see what he does."

"No, you should call him, so he'll go to you…"

"He's not a dog…"

While they bickered, Max took a step. They immediately shut up, holding their breaths as if scared one more word would break the spell. He swayed a bit on his unsteady feet and went for a second step. Blaine reached his arms to catch him in case he tripped.

"You're doing great, Max!" Blaine cheered. Max looked at him, and gave him the biggest of smiles. Laughing, he threw himself into his uncle's arms, and Blaine lifted him in the air in celebration. "Yes! You did it! Your first steps, kiddo!"

With his free arm, he pulled Kurt into the hug, and Kurt touched the screen to use the frontal camera, and focused it on their three happy faces. He and Blaine started kissing Max's cheeks until he was laughing so hard he couldn't breathe.

"Oh, he's going to give us so much more trouble now," Blaine said as Kurt tapped the phone screen to stop filming. "He's going to start running around. We'll have to pay extra attention."

"I'll keep an eye on him, don't worry," Kurt replied, holding Max as he followed Blaine to the kitchen. "Now you go or you'll be late for work."

"I know, I know," Blaine babbled. He looked around the kitchen, which was a mess. "I should…"

"I'll clean it. Just go," Kurt rolled his eyes.

"Okay, thank you. Can you send me that video, please?" Blaine asked, dropping one more kiss on top of Max's head.

Blaine rewatched the video a million times that day, and sent it to Sam and Daniel, squealing in excitement. One more milestone. And his first birthday was coming in just a few weeks.

He smiled sadly as he pressed play again. The two people he wanted to show it to the most were the only ones who weren't there to see it.

Daniel watched the video for a second time, and wondered what exactly Blaine was expecting him to reply. Sure, it was exciting that Max had taken his first steps, but the way he and Kurt behaved together…

He felt a little dizzy watching them. Did they really not notice the electricity between them or did they pretend it wasn't there?

He couldn't believe someone could be that clueless.

Soon, Blaine's apartment seemed to grow smaller, just as Max's feet became steadier. The little boy was soon walking all around the place, getting faster every day, and keeping Kurt on his toes. It was becoming difficult to keep up with him, and there was no way to distract him with the TV or his usual toys: now that he had discovered there was something new he could do, Max had an endless source of energy.

That's why when he arrived at work that morning, while Blaine was pouring extra coffee for the both of them, Kurt said: "Hey, would it be okay if I took Max out for a while today? There's a storytelling event for kids his age at the public library, and I thought he'd enjoy going somewhere new."

Blaine watched him, leaning against the kitchen counter. "I guess it could be nice." He tried to hide his smirk with the mug. "He's driving you crazy, isn't he?"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "It's not about me. I think he's the one going crazy, always trapped inside the same four walls. Maybe it'd be good for him. He could play with other kids, socialize. He must get bored with only old people like us."

"Hey, speak for yourself," Blaine said, pretending to be offended, and Kurt chuckled. "Alright. You can take him. Just give me a call when you get back, okay?"

"Of course," Kurt took a sip from his coffee.

"Oh, by the way, I was meaning to ask you…" Blaine said, as he took his own empty mug to the sink. "Max's birthday is coming up, on the 21st."

"Oh, already?!" Kurt said, surprised. "How the hell is he growing up so fast?"

"Beats me," Blaine shrugged. "It seems like it was yesterday he couldn't even sit by himself and now he's running all over the apartment." With a longing sigh, Blaine said: "The thing is… I feel like I should do something special for him, you know? What do you think?"

"Of course, he deserves to be celebrated," Kurt said. "What do you need me to do? I can bake a cake, if you want."

"You would? Really? That would be great, Kurt!" Blaine smiled broadly. "Maybe we can have a little party? I mean, it'll be all grownups, but I hate the idea of him not having a party at all."

"Well, duh, inviting people means he gets presents, so I think Max is going to be happy, no matter who comes," Kurt replied. He fished his notebook out of his bag and looked for a blank page. He started a list of the things they needed. "Cake. Decorations. Guests. Who did you have in mind?"

"Sam, definitely. And he'll want to bring Mercedes," Blaine said, as Kurt wrote it down. "Oh, and Daniel, of course."

Kurt reluctantly added the name to the list.

"And… well, that's sadly it for me."

"So it'd be four grown-ups, plus the birthday boy…"

"Four?" Blaine interrupted, confused. "What, did you think you were not invited? Kurt, don't be ridiculous. Max adores you."

"Oh," Kurt bit his lip, secretly touched. "That's so nice. Are you sure?"

"Of course, I'm sure," Blaine looked at him like he was crazy. "Maybe you can bring Rachel? Or any friend you want? The more the merrier."

Kurt beamed at him. "I'll talk to her, but I'm sure she'll be on board. Okay, so I'll take care of the cake…"

"I can buy some decorations." Blaine glanced at the clock. "I have to run, but we can discuss more later?"

"Sure. Start thinking what kind of cake you want!" Kurt exclaimed as Blaine kissed Max's forehead goodbye.

"I trust your excellent judgement," Blaine winked. "Let me know how that visit to the library goes! Have fun, boys!"

Once Max was done with his breakfast, Kurt wrapped him in a thick coat to protect him from the chilly February weather, and they left the apartment. It wasn't very usual for them to be out by themselves. The only exception were Wednesday mornings, when Kurt had Blaine's class, and Max stayed in Sam's office during it. Kurt usually picked up the boy there and walked to the apartment with him. It was still a little nerve-wrecking, knowing he was responsible for Max's safety out here in the big wide world. Kurt was always so suddenly aware of all the dangers that surrounded them. Still, Max remained seated in his stroller, looking around with interest and not giving him any trouble, so after a couple of blocks, Kurt began to relax.

New York City was decorated for Valentine's Day, which Kurt tried to ignore. However, it was hard not to notice the giant red hearts in every store window, the jewelry ads with disgustingly cheesy couples, and the restaurants' boards showing their romantic menus for the date and reminding everyone to make their reservations.

Kurt glared at every single one of those horrible reminders of his perennial loneliness.

The library was already full with kids and their parents or nannies. It looked like this was a monthly event, because most of the adults were chatting amongst themselves like they were already familiar, and the children ran around laughing, playing together as they waited for the activities to begin. Kurt immediately felt out of place. He helped Max out of the stroller and parked it against the wall, where everyone else seemed to have left theirs. Max stood next to him, one finger in his mouth, his fingers closed in a tight fist in Kurt's pants, watching distrustfully at all those strangers.

"It's okay, sweetie," Kurt said softly. "If you get bored, we can just go home. But I thought it could be fun to see kids your own age for once. Wouldn't that be nice? Having someone to play with?"

Max tightened his hold on him. Kurt thought he would have to talk to Blaine, depending on how this went. If Max didn't start hanging out around other kids, he would have a really bad time once he started kindergarten, or even elementary school. He hated thinking that maybe Max would isolate himself, have no friends. Such a sweet little boy… he didn't want him to go through some of the shitty things he had gone through.

A lady with a funny hat and a book under her arm clapped her hands to get everyone's attention, and invited people to take a seat on the floor, where a sea of pillows made a semi-circle around her. The parents and nannies began to gather their children, and sat with them on their laps. Kurt followed their example, and Max snuggled against his chest, watching everyone with quiet interest.

The lady had a big monkey puppet that she used to talk about the story. Max pointed at it with big eyes, looking at Kurt as if saying "did you see that monkey? He's awesome and I want one." Kurt smiled down at him, as Amigo the Monkey told them a story about the beauty of sharing and making friends. Max listened attentively, mostly entranced by the puppet, until the story was over, and when all the other kids started clapping, he clapped too. Kurt smiled into his hair.

Two more women joined the first lady and divided all the kids into groups for activities. Kurt encouraged Max to go with them, and watched as he settled at a little table where they were going to do some finger painting. Kurt stayed on the floor, watching him, ready to jump in and rescue him at the first sign of discomfort.

Kurt startled when someone sat next to him and said: "I don't think I've seen you around here before."

Kur turned to face the newcomer, and found an attractive man around his own age (maybe one or two years older?), with soft red hair and friendly green eyes, grinning at him. His freckled face was almost mesmerizing, and Kurt had to remind himself to close his mouth, which was hanging open with a quiet gasp.

"Hi! No, this is our first time," Kurt said, remembering how words worked. "I'm Kurt."

The man shook his hand. "Noah. And I'm guessing that's not your own kid, Kurt? Though I have to say you two have beautiful blue eyes."

Kurt laughed, allowing himself to feel delighted at the compliment. It had been a while since a guy had paid him one. "Thank you. And no, Max's not my kid. I'm his babysitter. Nanny. Still not sure which word applies to our situation."

Noah chuckled. It was a nice sound. "Nanny's fine, I guess. I do hate it when people say Manny, though. Like you need to throw the 'man' part around to remind everyone you're not doing a woman's job. What kind of insanity is that?" He rolled his eyes. "Mine's the chubby blond kid over there. His name's Brady. I've worked for his family since he was born, and he just turned two."

"Max is going to be one in a couple of weeks," Kurt commented. "He's an angel. I'm very lucky I got this job."

"Brady is a good kid, too. A little spoiled, maybe, but his parents are filthy rich, so what would you expect, right?" He shrugged. "They fill his day with a bunch of activities, too. After this, I have to take him to swimming lessons, and then piano. Piano, can you believe it? He's two."

"Seems a bit too much," Kurt agreed. What kind of childhood would that be? "I mean, he's just so young."

"He is. Still a baby, really," Noah said. He looked at Kurt, interest written all over his gaze. "So what about Max's parents? Are they cool?"

Kurt decided not to talk about Cooper and Sara. "His uncle's raising him," he said, his tone of voice making it clear that he didn't want to answer any questions about that. "He's amazing, really. A great guy."

"I'm glad," Noah nodded thoughtfully. "And what about you? Are you in school?"

While Max painted, making a mess of colors with his hands, Kurt and Noah talked about themselves. Noah was in Med school, hoping to be a pediatrician one day. He was twenty four, and he let it slip very smoothly that he was single, and had broken up with his last boyfriend four months ago. Then he gave Kurt a smile that made it obvious there was a reason why he was mentioning this.

Max walked back towards Kurt, one of the library ladies behind him to help him, carrying his new drawing and showing it to Kurt with wide eyes.

"Oh sweetie! Look at that, you're a natural!" Kurt said, looking fondly at the colors blurring together.

Max gave him a big smile.

Once all the activities and games were over, the adults began putting on their coats and calling for their children. Noah and Kurt stood up, too, and Noah glanced at him.

"So…" he cleared his throat. "Would it be too crazy to ask you out?"

Kurt left the library ten minutes later, with a sticky drawing in his bag and a new number in his phone.

Noah said he wanted to take him out on a date two days before Valentine's Day. Kurt thought it was an unusual request, and when he said so, Noah admitted he didn't want the pressure of the most romantic day of the year hanging over their heads.

"But, if it all goes well, I get to see you again two days later," he had said over the phone, his voice soft and nice in Kurt's ear. "And I have a feeling I'll really want to see you again."

Kurt smiled. He couldn't not to.

It ended up being a lovely day. They both needed to be up early for work the next morning, so they went out for coffee, to a cute little place in Brooklyn Kurt had never been to before. They made excellent mochas, though, so he was sure he would be coming back soon.

He was shocked at how easy it was to talk to Noah. He was kind and funny, and everything he said was interesting, never boring, never self-centered. And the fact that he was gorgeous didn't hurt either. Kurt had gotten lost for a moment trying to count the freckles on his perfect cheekbones.

Afterwards, he walked Kurt to the bus stop and dropped a quick, chaste peck on his lips, and his face had gone almost as red as his hair. He was cute. He was… perfect.

Kurt leaned on the closed apartment door once he was inside. Rachel watched him from the couch, where she was wrapped in a blanket changing the channels on the television.

"And?" She asked, expectant.

So Kurt told him exactly what he had been thinking. "He's perfect. He's everything I have ever wanted."

Rachel waited for more. Kurt closed his eyes and banged his head against the door for a moment. She turned the TV off and turned a little on the couch to face him fully. "But…?"

Kurt's blue eyes settled on her. She saw how lost he was, how sad. "But I think he's a few months too late."

Rachel lifted the corner of her blanket, and Kurt kicked his shoes off, dropping his bag on the floor, before joining her. She hugged him against her side tightly. "If he's so perfect, I think he's worth a shot, right? Give him time."

"Maybe," Kurt sighed and cuddled a little closer. "It'd be nice to have a date on Valentine's Day. And he's a nice kisser."

Rachel hummed, leaning her head on top of Kurt's. "I miss that."

"What? Kissing?" He asked, looking up at her.

"Yeah. I think that's what I miss the most. Just kissing," she shrugged a little. "Finn was a great kisser. I think it also had to do with the fact that he was so much bigger than me. Every time he kissed me, it was like a full body experience. He held me so… completely, you know?"

Kurt bit his lip. "You must hate me. I keep complaining about my love life and I… I know how hard it's been for you, Rach."

"Oh please. That doesn't mean you're not entitled to drama," she said. "And I have to say I'm living vicariously through you at the moment."

Kurt groaned. "What for? The guy I truly, truly like is probably going to be banging that Latino Adonis on Valentine's Day, and I'm going to waste a perfectly good guy who seems to like me just because I can't get over him. Trust me, you don't want to be me."

Rachel elbowed him lightly. "You know, there's an ice cream sale at the grocery store…"

"Fill the freezer," Kurt muttered immediately, in a bitter voice. "It sounds like we're both going to need it."

Kurt didn't think a trip to the emergency room would be the most romantic Valentine's Day date, so he looked at Noah a little skeptically. "I don't think you know exactly what you're getting yourself into."

Noah chuckled and pressed the skates into Kurt's hands. "Trust me. I know what I'm doing."

It was a cold night, and Kurt was wearing his favorite coat. He did not feel like falling on his ass wearing it. He glanced quickly at all the couples ice-skating together and realized that he hadn't yet tried this. He had been at Rockefeller Center a million times since he had moved to New York, but there were so many things he still hadn't tried.

The look on Noah's face was enough to convince him. He had promised this was only the first part of their date: the second included a nice dinner at a Mediterranean restaurant not far away. Noah had seemed delighted to brag about how the family he worked for had pulled a few strings so he could get a reservation with such little time in advance. "Perks of the job," he said bashfully, and Kurt couldn't help thinking he was insanely cute.

They got into the rink. Kurt didn't let go of Noah's hand. He considered himself a graceful person, but he didn't trust in those damn skates. He was not about to make a fool of himself in front of all these people.

Noah didn't look like it bothered him. In fact, he held onto Kurt's hand a little more tightly.

"I feel like Bambi," Kurt laughed, feeling utterly ridiculous.

"You just need more practice," Noah assured him, grinning widely. "I can't believe you've never been ice-skating. It was one of my favorite things to do as a child. I actually wanted to be an Olympic figure skater."

"You're kidding me," Kurt said, looking up at him.

"Nope. I really did," Noah moved to skate in front of him, backwards, so he could hold both of Kurt's hands and guide him. "But I also wanted to be a doctor, a firefighter, a cop, and an astronaut. I was a very versatile child."

Kurt laughed. "The doctor thing stuck around."

"It did," Noah shrugged. "I just like the idea of helping people."

Kurt couldn't help the warm smile tugging at his lips. "I like that."

"Me too." He suddenly let go of Kurt's hands and moved away, out of reach, making Kurt shriek embarrassingly. "See? You've got this under control! You're a natural!"

I can definitely like him, Kurt thought to himself, as he struggled not to fall on his butt. If I give myself time to stop being such an idiot, I can like him. He's so perfect. Where the hell was he three months ago?

When it was almost time for their reservation, Noah helped him out of the rink. They took their skates off and began walking down the street, hand in hand. It was nice. It was so, so nice, and Kurt wanted this to be real. It was almost something out of a movie, and it seemed impossible, so impossible for this to be happening to him.

And even more impossible that he had to focus really hard not to be thinking about someone else.

They had almost reached the restaurant when Noah stopped, in the middle of the sidewalk. People looked at them moodily, like every New Yorker who sees their path suddenly interrupted. Kurt frowned at him, curiously, wondering what was wrong.

"You know, I don't want to wait until the end of the date to do this again," Noah murmured, and placed a hand on Kurt's cheek, pulling him closer. Kurt held his breath, and didn't stop him.

He truly was an amazing kisser. He was sweet, soft, and gentle. The hand that wasn't cupping his cheek was placed on Kurt's waist, as if trying to bring him even closer. Kurt could feel Noah's heartbeat all through their layers of clothing.

Kurt fisted a hand on Noah's scarf. Kiss him. Enjoy it. Forget everything else.

Never had a kiss been more perfect, and yet Kurt felt like everything about it was wrong.

Blaine knew this probably wasn't the Valentine's Day date Daniel had had in mind when they talked about doing something, but he truly couldn't offer anything else. Still, dinner had been nice, and maybe they could just go to his apartment and watch a movie after he put Max to sleep. Daniel had known what he was getting into when they started dating: Blaine came with a baby, and that baby was currently crashing the most romantic of all nights.

Blaine pushed the stroller. Daniel was telling him about something that had happened at work today, about a scandalous affair between the editor and the receptionist, and how they had been caught having sex in the janitor's closet. Apparently love was in the air, and people went insane this time of the year.

They turned a corner, and Blaine was about to comment on how uncomfortable having sex in a janitor's closet seemed (seriously, it sounded too crowded and unhygienic), when he stopped, frozen in the middle of the sidewalk, the stroller's wheel five inches from the couple kissing passionately in front of them.

Daniel stopped talking when he realized Blaine wasn't paying attention anymore, he too glancing at the two boys obstructing their way. His eyes shifted from them to Blaine, and back again. Blaine felt his hands tightening slightly at the stroller's handle.

"Kurt?" He said, his voice a little higher than normal.

Kurt pulled away from the red haired man and looked aside, eyes wide and cheeks tinged with a blush. His lips were unusually pink, and his hand was wrapped in the stranger's scarf, like he was trying to pull him even closer. He blinked at them in confusion. "Oh, ah. Blaine…"

"I don't think I know your friend," Blaine said, tilting his head curiously.

"This is Noah," Kurt introduced. "Noah, this is Blaine. Max's uncle."

"Oh, the boss!" Noah said with a charming smile, offering his hand to Blaine. "It's nice to meet you. You have a cute kid."

Blaine felt even more confused than before. "You… know Max."

"We met at the library during story time!" Kurt exclaimed, looking a little awkward. "Noah was there with the kid he works with, too…"

"Right," Blaine nodded, feeling a little stupid. "Right, you just… never mentioned meeting anyone. There. At the library, I mean."

Daniel cleared his throat pointedly.

"This is Daniel, my…" Blaine began saying, and then stopped. "Daniel."

"His Daniel, apparently," Daniel rolled his eyes and smiled as he shook Noah's hand. "Nice to meet you. And nice to see you again, Kurt."

By now Max was bouncing in the stroller, happy to see Kurt, so Kurt leaned in to plant a kiss on the top of his head.

"We have a dinner reservation to get to," Noah said, pointing at the restaurant down the street. "It was great meeting you all! Have a nice Valentine's Day!"

"You too," Blaine muttered, and watched as Noah wrapped an arm around Kurt's waist to guide him towards the restaurant. Kurt looked over his shoulder once before they went inside, and smiled briefly at Blaine, before looking away very quickly.

Daniel was looking at him in silence. Blaine didn't even realize it took a couple of minutes for him to stop watching the spot where Kurt and Noah had disappeared into the restaurant. He shook his head minutely and simply began walking again, not saying a word. He was clearly lost in thought, and didn't talk again until they arrived at his apartment.

"Let me get Max to bed and then we can watch a movie," he said distractedly. "Why don't you choose something?"

"Actually, you know what?" Daniel said, from the doorway. "I'm kinda tired, so… I think I'll just go, if you don't mind."

Blaine was taking Max out of the stroller. "Oh, sure. No problem. I'll call you tomorrow?"

They said goodbye with a quick kiss. After Max was asleep, Blaine got the bottle of wine he had put in the fridge for the night, and uncapped it. He poured himself a glass and went out to sit on the balcony, a thick blanket wrapped around himself.

If they had met at the library, they hadn't been together long. When had Kurt taken Max to story time? Monday? Tuesday? They must have really liked each other to be kissing like that in the middle of the sidewalk, without a care in the world.

Blaine felt like there was a sudden hole in his stomach. Maybe something he had eaten at dinner wasn't sitting well with him. He put the glass down and watched the traffic below. There were couples kissing in every corner tonight. The most romantic night of the year.

He went to sleep alone.

Kurt was distracted. He couldn't help it. Every time he tried to put Blaine behind him… Manhattan was a big island, and they had to walk the same street on the same night, bump into each other. It had been a nice kiss. Why did Blaine have to ruin it?

Noah touched his hand delicately to get his attention. "This is not going to work, is it?"

Kurt wondered how he knew. And then realized he had been silent during the entirety of dinner. "I'm sorry, I'm just… in the clouds. I'm listening now."

"No, Kurt. I think…" Noah shook his head. "I saw how everything changed in just one second when you saw him. And I've sort of wondered if there was someone else you liked, because after our first kiss, and our conversations, it always looks like you're trying to force yourself to be there with me in the moment, instead of with someone else in your head. And it's Blaine, isn't it?"

Kurt hid his face in his hands. "Am I that obvious?"

"Just a little," Noah shrugged, looking a little sad. "I don't think he noticed, though."

"I'm so sorry. You're… you know, I actually told my roommate that you are everything I have ever wanted," Kurt admitted, feeling pathetic. "It's just…"

"I'm not him," Noah finished for him.

"I feel so bad," Kurt bit his lip.

"It's fine. And hey, at least I got a date and great kiss with an attractive guy on Valentine's Day. So it wasn't exactly a waste of my time." Noah fished his wallet and got some money out to pay the bill, ignoring Kurt's protests. "Don't worry about it."

"But this is so unfair…" Kurt insisted. "Let me at least…"

"Kurt, really, forget it," Noah said kindly. "I'll walk you to the bus stop, okay?"

Kurt wanted to bang his head against the wall repeatedly. Hopefully until he passed out and forgot what an embarrassment he was.

He hoped Rachel had filled the freezer with that ice-cream, after all.

Is Blaine… jealous?! GASP.

;)

See you guys next week!

L.-