Well. Here's the thing, readers. This chapter didn't quite work out like I'd intended it to. It was supposed to end with Black Friday...but I felt like the conversations and events of this chapter were far more important than just hurrying the story line. This has a lot of fluff, but towards the end gets heavy. Enjoy :)
Chapter 17
Thanksgiving Week (Tuesday)
"Okay, I have seven pairs of pants, eight shirts, four different scarves, three pairs of shoes, two hats, gloves, an extra coat, three cardigans, and a lint roller. Do you think that's enough?" Kurt looked nervously at his suitcase, debating whether or not he'd need more shoes.
Blaine looked up from his duffle bag, "Are you going somewhere after the three day stay in Ohio? Because I have two pairs of pants, four shirts, a scarf, two pairs of shoes, my beanie, and my turkey eating pants." Blaine held up a pair of elastic-waist workout pants. "These things are blessed. I still think there is a stain from last year's cranberry sauce."
Kurt raised an eyebrow at Blaine, "I know for a fact that your mother makes you dress up for Thanksgiving. So don't you dare insist that you can wear those. Anyway, I need to be prepared for anything." He turned back to his closet, surveying his sweaters.
Blaine glanced at Kurt before throwing the teal box into his duffle bag. He too had to be prepared for anything. He quickly threw another scarf over the box. "For your information, the swishy pants are worn during my traditional 1 AM feast."
"Swishy pants?" Kurt giggled. "You are kidding me? 1 AM feast? Blaine, you haven't even digested dinner at that point." Kurt shook his head again, sometimes Blaine was just too much. "Well when you finish packing your stuff, can you pack Abu's bag?"
"Already done." Blaine zipped up his bag, "I still can't believe you have so much stuff. Kurt, it's three days. You can wear the same pair of jeans twice."
"Says the boy with a full closet at home. You can just look through there for clothes if you need it. And what did you pack for Abu?" Kurt pulled out one of his suits and inspected it.
"Unless you are going undercover while in Lima, you won't need that. And for your information, we are also staying at your house one night, so you could pick up clothes there." Blaine attempted to pull some of Kurt's clothes out of the suitcase.
"Touch any of my clothes and I will pull your fingernails off." Kurt warned.
"Fiiine." Blaine whined, "but do I have to take it to the car?"
"Yes. You do." Kurt pulled out some of Blaine's clothes, refolding it, "This is all going to be wrinkled by the time we get to Ohio if you don't fold it right."
"Oi!" Blaine pulled the bag away from Kurt, "No touchy!"
"What do you have in there, some other guys number or something?" Kurt winked and turned to his dresser, examining his moisturizers.
"No. But I know you want to take out my swishy pants. And you won't." Blaine quickly pulled the blue box out and slipped it into his jacket pocket. "Those swishy pants are my life."
Kurt bit his lip and just zipped his suitcase, "What did you pack for Abu? You avoided the question."
Blaine pulled a duffle bag bigger than his own out, "Just some toys, a few bones. The bib you insisted on buying him. His Lightening McQueen stuffed animal. Blaine bought him his own after he repeatedly tried to ruin theirs. "His blanket, his favorite treats, and his bed."
"So naturally you brought more for the dog than you brought for yourself." Kurt bent down and kissed Abu.
Blaine grinned, "He's my baby!"
"I thought I was your baby?" Kurt faked a hurt expression, glaring at Abu.
Blaine pulled Kurt up and kissed him, "You are. In a different way."
"You realize this is our first Thanksgiving together?" Kurt smiled softly at Blaine, "Like, together for it."
Blaine smiled, thinking about how the weekend was going to mean so much more. "Which is exactly why we need to get going if we want to be in Lima by a decent time." He had something he needed to do at the Hummel residence.
"Honey, it is 7:30, we can take our time." Both boys had been up since three, not wanting to admit it, but excited to go back home. Kurt pointed to his suitcase, "Okay, muscles, it's time to put those arms to good use."
Blaine rolled his eyes, "Can you at least carry Abu's so I don't have to make a hundred trips up and down?"
Kurt nodded, checking his email. "I got my schedule for the diner. I work on weekends, with you!" Kurt didn't get the role in his play, so he wasn't going to Broadway. It had taken a few weeks, but he was better now. Was he disappointed? Yes. He thought that because he worked on the role for weeks and weeks beforehand, he would be the obvious choice for the role. What he hadn't realized, was that other people who had originally been in the play were auditioning for the smaller roles, because they knew it was rare for someone new to be a headliner in a show. Kurt hadn't realized that.
Bryce did.
When Kurt saw the list of people who got the roles, he quickly scanned the character names until he found the one he auditioned for, Bryce's name was next to it.
Kurt had some choice words for Bryce, but Bryce suddenly didn't care about Kurt anymore. He quit his job at the diner, claiming he was the next big star and needed more time to rehearse.
Blaine suggested Kurt try out for the job, so he did. Now they would get to spend more time together on the weekends.
Blaine's mind swirled with ideas for duets he could do with Kurt, "That's awesome! Now you can sing with me again! Like in high school!"
"Those three duets we got to sing," Kurt joked, "Will you actually deign to perform with little old me?"
Blaine pulled Kurt out of the door and down the steps, he had both his duffle bag and Kurt's suitcase in his hands, Kurt had Abu's duffle bag and Abu. Kurt turned and locked the three locks on the door, "You know, this is the longest we've ever been away from the apartment." Blaine had an odd look on his face, "Our home."
Kurt wrinkled is nose, "I still don't like to think of this place as our home. I think of it as our holding cell." He looked into Blaine's face and sighed, "Yeah. Okay. It's our first home. But still. Boo."
Blaine led them to the car, "Are we supposed to wait for Hayden and Santana?"
"No, they left for Ohio last night. They promised they'd be there for dinner on Thursday though." Kurt stowed everything in the back of the car, grimacing when he realized Blaine left a bag full of workout clothes in there. "I can't believe Santana's parents are going away for Thanksgiving."
Blaine slid into the driver's seat, "Whatever they want. I'm glad that means we get to spend Thanksgiving with them, though. I was shocked when my dad suggested it. He's fine with us, you know, because he's used to it. But Santana and Hayden? That's a whole new realm for him."
He sat there staring at Kurt, who just stared back. "Am I missing something? Did I get ketchup on my face?" Kurt pulled down the mirror, frantically checking his complexion.
"No, no. I was waiting for you to buckle up." Blaine motioned to the seatbelt.
"Blaine it's a freaking eight hour drive. Can we just get out of the city, where you will be going twenty, before I put this straight jacket on?" Kurt pouted.
"Uh, no. You can put it on right now. I don't care if I'm only going two, you will wear the seatbelt. I want to keep you around for as long as possible." Blaine waited, and when Kurt didn't put the seatbelt on, he reached over and did it for him.
"You worry too much," Kurt put his legs up on the dashboard and sulked, "This is cutting into my shoulder."
Blaine turned up the music and started singing, instantly putting Kurt in a better mood, especially when Teenage Dream came on the radio. Blaine sung the entire song to Kurt, mimicking some of the moves, or at least what he could do sitting down, and making puppy dog eyes at Kurt.
Kurt just laughed and sang along, holding Blaine's hand as they navigated out of the city and back towards Lima.
When they finally hit the highway, they discovered something they didn't expect – Abu hated driving. He really, really didn't like it at all. Driving slowly in the city wasn't an issue, but when the car sped up, he freaked out. Kurt had to hold him, and that didn't fare too well either.
Kurt had scratches all up his arms and chest. Abu even hit his chin, which Blaine yelled at him for. "Oh the way home, we're going to see if they have any of that sedating stuff," Kurt huffed, making sure he didn't have any holes in his clothes.
Blaine laughed, taking Kurt's hand as he looked at the sleeping Abu in the back. Blaine didn't know how much time they had before Abu freaked out again, so he held Kurt's hand tightly, trying to send his love through his fingertips. The box in his pocket weighed a hundred pounds, pressing into his hip.
What if Kurt said no?
What if Kurt thought it was stupid? They'd always been cautious to throw stereotypical gender roles in the relationship away. Did Kurt want to be the one to do this?
But Blaine knew he couldn't let his grandfather down. His grandfather wanted to see a wedding. And Blaine knew in the deepest, darkest part of his heart, that Kurt was the only person he'd ever truly love.
He never really had stage fright before, but doing this one thing for the man he loved terrified him.
Kurt glanced over at Blaine, who had gone white, "Are you okay, Blaine?" Kurt turned in his seat, feeling Blaine's forehead, which was covered in sweat. "Honey, do you want me to drive the rest of the way?"
Blaine gave a forced, high pitched laugh, "No. I'm fine. Just…I need caffeine." He quickly pulled into a rest station on the side, grimacing at the rust and ivy covered building.
Kurt's eyes were wide with disgust, "Why don't we drive a little more. I'll drive if you want me to, but you will pick up something particularly nasty if you go there."
Blaine was out of the parking lot quickly, and though it took them fifteen minutes off course, they found a Starbucks. "Why are these so difficult to find here?"
"Because they aren't on every other corner like in the city." Kurt drawled, "You go in and grab some coffee and use the restroom. I'll wait out here with Abu."
They took turns grabbing coffee, and after fighting over who would drive, Kurt found himself in the driver's seat. "I'm not even sure you know how to drive anymore. When was the last time you drove?"
Kurt's face broke into a smile as he put down the windows and felt the air hit him in the face, "Too long." He sped a little more, "Oh, this is nice."
"Be careful. Remember, the car can't go that fast. It'll stall," Blaine stretched out in the passenger seat, throwing his hand out the window, "Look! My hand is a dolphin!" He played with the cool wind whipping by him.
Kurt started shivering eventually, so he ruined Blaine's fun and rolled the windows up. "Well, that was fun." He quipped, grinning at Blaine.
"We're going to be sick," Blaine sniffed, bringing his knees up on the seat so he could tuck his nose into his knees.
"We'll be fine."
Several hours later, Blaine pulled into the Hummel driveway. Abu was in Kurt's lap, and fresh scratch marks lined his arms. Kurt ran out of the car faster than he did at a sale, meeting his father halfway in the yard, "Dad!" The men embraced, Abu jumping on both of their legs.
"Kurt! I missed you so much," Burt hugged Kurt tightly, not wanting to let him go, "Are you eating right? You look thin. And what are those," Burt held up Kurt's arms.
"Abu doesn't like cars," Kurt soothed his father, who was now stalking towards Blaine.
"Blaine!" He wrapped Blaine in a hug too, giving him an extra squeeze, "I'm really glad you're here too. I was worried for a minute." He looked between the two boys, "Everything okay now?"
Kurt took Blaine's hand in his own, "Things couldn't be more perfect, dad. We both messed up a little, but it only made us stronger."
Burt looked between his son and Blaine, and he couldn't take his eyes off of them. They'd changed. The air around them was different. It's not that they weren't serious before, but now it looked like there truthfully would be no turning back. Blaine looked at Kurt like he was the only thing in his world. Kurt looked like Blaine was his world.
"All right you two. Let's get you in the house for the night." Burt watches as the waited for Abu, "I don't know what you think that dog is going to do tonight."
"We have a bed for him, Dad," Kurt held up a bed. "And he won't go to the bathroom inside."
"Okay, the bed can go in the living room near the sofa. That way if he needs to go out, Blaine will be there." Burt closed the door and walked through towards the kitchen.
"Excuse me?" Kurt trailed behind him. "Blaine is not sleeping on the sofa."
Blaine's eyes went wide and he set to work fixing Abu's bed while Abu ran around the house, no doubt finding something to break. "Kurt, I can sleep down here, whatever your dad wants." He laid his jacked over the back of the sofa, and then corralled Abu.
"Dad. We share a bed in New York. Why can't we share one here?" Kurt got himself a drink and looked towards Blaine, who shook his head that no, he didn't want one.
Before Burt could answer, a shriek sounded throughout the house, "Kurt!" Carole came running to the tall boy, hugging him and kissing his cheek, "I'm so glad you're home!"
"Thanks Carole," Kurt grinned, keeping an arm around her waist.
"Where's Blaine?" She turned and looked towards the living room, giving an equally shrill shriek when she saw him, "Oh my god! Look at you! Your hair is so long!" she ran towards him, and he scooped her up.
"It's great to see you, Carole." He laughed, putting her back on the ground. "I've missed you!"
"What's up with all the yelling?" Finn loped into the kitchen, stopping short when he saw Kurt. "Little bro!" He hugged Kurt awkwardly, "Did you grow again?" He turned to Blaine, "You certainly didn't!" He hugged Blaine as well. "I hope your mom can cook. I've been training for this Thanksgiving for weeks."
Blaine grinned, "My grandmother has actually been helping mom cook, but I think they're ready. They have enough food for a small army."
"They'll need it," Burt piped in, "Between all of us, your family, and Santana and her girlfriend. What made them want to invite us all over? Not that I'm going to complain."
Blaine looked at his feet, "My grandfather wanted everyone there," he mumbled, running a hand through Abu's fur.
Carole patted his shoulder, "I'm sorry about his illness, Blaine."
"Yeah. Me too," Blaine sighed, "Kurt, do you want help taking this stuff up to your room?"
Kurt nodded, realizing Blaine wanted to get away from all of the attention.
They boys went upstairs and Carole rounded on Burt, "You will let them sleep in the same bed."
Burt started petting Abu, "I just don't think it's a good idea."
"Burt, they sleep together in New York, they went to college together. Hell, Blaine slept over here quite a few time while they were still in college. What's going on?" She put her hand on his face, searching his eyes, "What are you worried about?"
Burt looked away, "I just…I knew one day I'd lose all of Kurt to Blaine, but I thought I'd have a little more time. He doesn't rely on me for his strength anymore, he relies on Blaine."
Carole smiled, "Isn't that what you've wanted this whole time? Someone he could turn to, someone he could just be himself with? What I don't understand is why you're having these doubts now."
"You didn't see the way they looked at each other?" Burt questioned, knowing his far more perceptive wife had to have noticed.
She still smiled, "I did. I think it's great. They are so…mature. I wish Finn would find someone who would mature him like that. Maybe we could even get him out of the house."
Burt picked up Kurt's coat, hanging it on the coat tree in the foyer. "Can you hand me Blaine's coat?"
Carole picked up the coat and a teal box fell out. She gasped a little when she realized what it was, and tried to shove it in the pocket without Burt seeing it.
"What's that?" Burt's voice had gone tight.
"It's um, a box." Carole clutched Blaine's coat. She was stuck between wanting to open it and see if it was what she suspected it was, and wanting to run the coat up to Blaine.
"Oh. Okay. I'll just hang the coat up then." Burt held out his hand, face soft. When Carole handed over the coat, he rummaged through the pocket until he found the box again. "There's a ring in here, isn't there?"
"Now Burt, it isn't our place to open that." Carole smiled widely, having to brace herself on the wall so she didn't jump up and down.
"I'm going out to the garage. When Blaine comes down here, you tell him I want to talk to him." He pocketed the box, walking towards the garage.
"Please don't get oil on the box!" Carole yelled.
Fifteen minutes later Blaine came down the steps, having freshened up and changed. "Hey Carole," he grinned when he saw her curled up on the couch with Abu, "Where's Burt? I need to um…talk to him about something."
Carole stopped stroking Abu, "Blaine…he knows."
"Knows what?" Blaine looked at Carole, confused, but also praying it wasn't about what was in his jacket pocket. Blaine then realized that his jacket had been hung up. "Oh dear. He found it?"
Carole nodded, "He's fine with it, I think."
"That's reassuring," Blaine ran a hand through his hair, "Any words of advice?"
"Did you bring a cup?"
Blaine turned towards the garage door, "Oh God."
Blaine walked into the garage to find Burt kneeling in front of their car, looking at the tread on the tires.
"Mr. Hummel?" Blaine squeaked, eyeing the wrench next to Burt.
Burt looked up, "Come here, Blaine. And call me Burt. Did we just go back three years? If you plan on using this," Burt pulled out the ring box, holding it up, "I think we're past Mr. Hummel."
Blaine laughed slightly, "Burt, are you proposing to me? What will Kurt say?"
Burt looked down at his position and laughed.
Finn walked through the door, swinging his keys, and stopped dead, a piece of pizza hanging out of his mouth. He held his hands up in the air, "I'm not going to ask anymore. I really need to move out of here." He quickly got in his car and sped down the street toward Noah Puckerman's house.
Burt stood, looking at Blaine. "Burt…I'd really like your blessing to do this." Blaine looked into Burt's eyes, and they seemed unsure. "I love him more than I love anything, Burt. I can't imagine my life without him. When I'm not with him, I want to be. I'm physically and emotionally weak when he's not there. It's like something is missing. He's constantly the first thing in my mind. I still get these…feelings whenever I just hold his hand. When I thought I lost him it was like I would never laugh or smile again. I don't know what I did to deserve your son, I really don't. He's everything I ever wanted. He takes my breath away just by standing there. I want to grow old with him. I want to raise children with him." Blaine paused, he had no idea where any of that had come from. "Burt, I promise I will love him better than anyone else ever could. I promise you, he's my everything." Blaine felt a tear slide down his cheek.
"I didn't mean you had to actually practice your speech," Burt laughed, pulling Blaine in for a hug. "You have my blessing a hundred percent."
When they pulled apart, Burt turned and quickly wiped his eyes, "If you could, you know, give me a minute."
Blaine took the box from his outstretched hand and tucked it safely into his pants, retreating back into the house, where Carole was sitting with mugs of hot chocolate. "Kurt's not down yet," she smiled at Blaine, who couldn't stop the grin on his face.
"He won't be down for another half hour. At least. He loves the amount of space in the shower here," Blaine sipped the hot chocolate.
Carole watched as Blaine stared at the pictures of Kurt on the wall, a smile playing on his lips. Even though she felt that perhaps it wasn't her place to say anything, she had to. "Blaine, I know I'm not Kurt's mother. But…I feel like I need to say something in her place." She watched as Blaine's smile faded, "No no. Don't think like that."
The smile came back, though Blaine's eyes were still full of questions.
She took his hand, and for a moment she saw the broken boy Kurt brought home almost three years ago. The boy who could barely make eye contact with Burt, who was so civil because he had any true personality repressed, flickered into the man who was there now. The man who loved the strongest person Carole knew. The man who now had his own amazing personality, who was truly proud of who he was, not the boy who acted like he was; Carole smiled. "Blaine, when I met Kurt, he pretended he was happy and content. He used his wit and his attitude to hide the fact that he was alone. But I saw a broken boy, someone who wanted to be loved in a way a family and friends couldn't provide. I feared he would never find it. Then I saw you, and the same ghosts existed in your eyes." She looked into Blaine's eyes, searching for any hint of those ghosts remaining, and she saw none, "It is my opinion that you both saved each other. When you broke up last year, I worried. See, the ghosts at that point had faded, but they weren't gone. When Kurt came home for Thanksgiving, the ghosts gained strength the entire time. But today, I don't see them at all. Blaine, people are going to have opinions. People are going to say you are far too young to get married. But you aren't. People who feel like you two do about each other and one in a million. I've been desperately in love twice in my life, to Burt, and to Finn's father. But Blaine, I'll never know the strength of love that you both have."
They both jumped when they heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Blaine looked at Carole who seemed to be trying to figure out what to say. "…and then I heard this whimpering in the alleyway, and sure enough it was Abu!"
Kurt wrapped an arm around Blaine's waist, "She's already heard that story, honey."
"But not from my point of view," Blaine countered.
Kurt picked up Blaine's mug of hot chocolate, sipping at it and leaning into Blaine, sighing contently.
Burt walked into the kitchen at that very moment, "Key Kurt, Blaine," he blinked a few times, trying not to lose control of is emotions again, "I thought about it, and that couch is new. Blaine really shouldn't sleep on it. So I guess since he's actually too tall to sleep in the tub, that defaults him to your bed."
"Good, because I was going to sneak him up in the middle of the night," Kurt held the cup up to Blaine's lips.
Burt scoffed, "You two will never change."
"I sure hope not," they both said at the same time, dissolving into laughter.
Burt returned to the garage.
Reviews? Comments? Things being thrown at me?