10 Years Ago

"Natalie," Blaine cooed to the little girl in his arms, "Batty Natty, please don't cry," he sang gently, "you'll wake up Hales and then she'll wake up Daddy and then I'll cry!"

Blaine danced around with his daughter in the moonlight, stepping awkwardly at times to avoid the squeaky floor panels. He lived for these moments, when he could just have a few seconds alone with one of the girls without the other one begging for attention.

They were growing so quickly, both of them walking and teething, constantly flipping from being the happiest little girls to the loudest in minutes.

Blaine cradled her a few minutes longer than necessary before placing her gently into the crib and turning on her Glow Worm. He leaned down and kissed her forehead before crossing the room to do the same to Haley. "I love you," he whispered to the sleeping figures before he set the baby monitor on the table and walked back across the hall to his bedroom.

Blaine tried to be quiet, but ended up jostling the bed slightly and he knew immediately that he'd woken Kurt up. "I'm sorry, Kurt," he whispered and tried to settle down into the bed.

"It's okay," Kurt murmured, his voice thick with sleep, "I have to go into the office early today anyway." Kurt threw his feet over the edge of the bed and flipped on his light.

Blaine blinked rapidly against the light, "Kurt! Turn that off!"

"I'm sorry, I have to get ready!"

"Kurt, it is only four in the morning! You cannot go to work right now. I have an appointment at nine; you promised you'd watch the girls!"

"Can't Santana do it?" Kurt was already pulling on his pants, "You know there's a show next week. I do not know why you would plan something for this week. If I do a good job maybe I could be financed to start creating my own line and then it would be easy street for us!"

Blaine sat up, all thoughts of sleep gone, "Kurt, we are fine for money. Santana is not our built in babysitter."

"Then why do we pay her?" Kurt asked as he rifled through his closet for the right tie, "This is important to me!"

"I know," Blaine said, his fatigue and anger mixing together, "but you let me sit here with the girls every single day of the week. Don't you miss them? Don't you want to spend time with them?"

"Of course I do," Kurt said coolly, "but someone has to prepare them for their future."

"I am!" Blaine stood and closed the door – the last thing he wanted was for the girls to wake up. "But my job can be done from home. I get paid just as much as you do, Kurt."

"Yeah and when I get my next raise you won't. And then when I sell my clothing line, you'll be making half of what I make," Kurt snapped. He was tired and stressed from work. He knew he should not take it out on Blaine but he was damn envious of everything Blaine had. Kurt could not shake the jealousy he felt when the girls tottered up to Blaine instead of him to show an old toy they found or needed a kiss after falling.

"You might get a raise at work, but you aren't raising our children," Blaine said finally, knowing that would sting Kurt the most.

It had been that way for the better part of year. Neither man knew it would happen. People had warned them about getting married so young, fresh out of college, but they ignored everyone.

The people warned them about becoming fathers so young, when small problems were already starting to come to the surface, but they ignored everyone.

Both Kurt and Blaine thought their love would be able to overcome everything it faced. But slowly over the course of just a year, the love began to grow thin.

Kurt was always at work, and Blaine resented him for that. Blaine wanted to get a few moments where he did not have to put on a happy face for the girls.

Kurt sighed as he looked at Blaine's dejected face, "I'm going to come home early today, okay? We can take the girls on a picnic. I swear I'll be home by 2."

Blaine nodded, trying to quell the spark of hope in his stomach. "I'll make sandwiches and everything. The girls could use some fresh air. Although last time we were there, Timmy pushed Haley into the sandbox."

"Timmy," Kurt questioned, happy to at least be having a normal conversation with his husband.

Blaine looked at Kurt, "Yeah, Timmy, Estelle's little boy? The one I am positive Haley is going to end up marrying? They hate each other, it is hilarious to watch."

Kurt was not sure why he felt like crying in that moment. It could have been because he had absolutely no idea who Timmy or Estelle were; or it could have been because Blaine's eyes lit up when he talked about the girls like they used to when he talked about Kurt. "Oh, right!" Kurt tried to throw in a giggle but it sounded hopeless to even him.

Kurt finished quickly and went to work, immersing himself into the work that almost made him forget that his marriage was crumbling and there was no way to save it.

Blaine went straight to work in the morning, preparing half a dozen sandwiches and making fresh lemonade. The girls slept late, so he was able to clean the small house and still get some work done for his coffee plant.

He planned on expanding in the next five years, and when he did that, it would mean big changes for everyone.

Santana, who came in once a week to relieve Blaine of some of his household duties, arrived at nine. "Blaine!" she said with a small smirk, "I thought Mr. Hummel would be here. Didn't you have a dentist appointment this morning?"

"I did," Blaine responded while attempting to beat a lemon into submission, "but Kurt couldn't watch the girls," he pointed to the girls who were now both holding thick crayons in their hands, attempting to color on the floor.

Some days, Blaine thanked modern technology in children's toys.

"Oh, of course not. He's too busy drawing Barbie dolls," Santana snapped.

"Stop it Santana," Blaine held up the pitiful amount of lemon juice and winced, "he's trying as hard as he can."

Santana immediately set to work trying to clean the windows Blaine had streaked up not ten minutes before, "Oh," she quirked an eyebrow, "all of a sudden you are sticking up for him? Did he finally lose some of his frigidness and you got some action?"

"SANTANA!" Blaine dropped the knife he was using, "Not in front of the girls!"

Santana laughed and looked at the two who were now trying to set the crayons on top of each other, "The question still stands."

"No," Blaine said with a sniff, "He's actually going to come for a picnic today. He's trying Santana."

Santana looked at Blaine and the smile on his face. There was a lightness about him that she hadn't seen in months. She did not want to tell him not to get his hopes up. She wanted Kurt to come home and go on a picnic, but she knew he would have some excuse.

She stuck around just long enough to know she was right. At 2:30, Blaine sat with a picture perfect picnic basket, a red-checkered blanket, and his two girls. Haley was in a pair of denim overalls that Santana knew would cause a fight even if Kurt did show up, and Natalie was in denim shorts and a pink t-shirt. Both girls had sunbonnets on and smelled of baby sunscreen.

Blaine was dressed up. He had on red shorts and a blue polo shirt. For the first time ever, Santana saw that he gelled his hair. He had really gone out of his way to make sure he was perfect for Kurt.

Santana could have spit fire.

"He's not coming, is he?" Blaine said after crossing his legs for the fiftieth time.

"No baby, I don't think he is," Santana said, placing a hand on his shoulder, "I'm supposed to leave but do you want me to stay?"

Blaine wanted someone there, someone he could talk to that could actually respond. "You don't have to…"

Santana did not falter; this man and these girls were the only family she had. "Come on, I do believe you promised these girls a picnic."

Blaine smiled a little and stood, determined to make the girls' picnic a success, even if it killed him.

When 6 o'clock rolled around, Kurt walked casually through the door. "Hello," he said to all three and immediately went to shower. He had spent the day running from boutique to boutique all over Southern California and he was tired and dirty.

Taking an extra hot shower, Kurt let the stress of the day melt away.

Blaine tried to hide his hurt once more. He did not want the girls to see him upset, even if they were too young to understand. All three were tired from a long day of sunshine, so Blaine gave the girls a quick bath in their bathroom and then settled them into their beds to sleep.

Blaine stood between the two and felt his vision go blurry. He knew what had to happen, but he did not want it to. He put one hand on each of the cribs and just stared at his two sleeping daughters.

He had wanted to give them the perfect life. He wanted to protect them from everything. But how could he?

Blaine was not happy with Kurt.

Nevertheless, Kurt made more money and had a more promising future that Blaine did. He was going to take the girls and run, no matter if Blaine was the one who took care of them.

Blaine knew he would fight Kurt every step of the way. He would not let them go, he could not.

Tears still silently falling, both girls looking up at him with huge blue eyes, he sang them a lullaby, hoping irrationally that they would remember his words if something did happen.

Hush, little baby, don't say a word.
Papa's gonna buy you a mockingbird

And if that mockingbird won't sing,
Papa's gonna buy you a diamond ring

And if that diamond ring turns brass,
Papa's gonna buy you a looking glass

And if that looking glass gets broke,
Papa's gonna buy you a billy goat

And if that billy goat won't pull,
Papa's gonna buy you a cart and bull

And if that cart and bull fall down,
You'll still be the sweetest little baby in town

Both girls were fast asleep by the time he finished the song at its slowed down pace, so he turned the nightlight on and left.

Kurt was in the living room looking through channels on the television when Blaine walked into the room. He sat heavily on the sofa and looked at Kurt, "Are you even going to explain?"

"Explain what?" Kurt continued pressing fabric around the mannequin in front of him, his eyes trained on both that and the television.

Blaine wanted to punch the wall he was so furious, "Explain to me why you came home four hours after you said you would. Explain to me why you skipped the picnic we planned with our daughters. Explain to me why you were at work for over twelve hours and you still can't leave it there. Explain to my why you aren't willing to make this work."

Kurt's face went white with shock, "Blaine…I forgot. I'm sorry, I'm so busy. There is no need to get mad Blaine…we'll do it later this week."

"No," Blaine said suddenly, his face ashen. He was tired of Kurt's lies and tired of constantly letting down his daughters. "We won't."

Kurt stared up at Blaine, "Blaine…don't."

"I don't want to do this anymore; I can't hurt our girls like this…" Blaine was standing and moving toward the kitchen, needing to do something with his hands.

"They have no idea!" Kurt said, "The just turned one, they don't even know where their noses are!"

"No," Blaine whirled around, "they might not. However, they know where mine is. And my eyes, and my mouth. I bet you didn't know that, right?"

"Blaine…" Kurt's voice had a warning tone.

"And Haley loves to crawl with the top of her head on the ground and I have no idea why. Natalie loves to listen to me play piano but she is afraid of it because the other day her fingers were pinched in the lid. Haley cannot touch any book because she rips the pages out. Natalie only colors with the purple crayon so Haley always steals it. Natalie won't fall asleep unless Haley is in the room, but Haley will fall asleep in a split second if she's tired," Blaine was breathing heavily.

Kurt put his head in his hands, "So what? You want me to take a few weeks off? Blaine, we already live in this saltine box, we can't do that I want out of here!"

"No," Blaine's word rang out loudly, "I want out of us."

Kurt's face looked at him, tearstained and heartbroken, and Blaine knew it was the hardest thing he'd ever done, but he had to, for his family. "Blaine…"

Suddenly Blaine was numb. He wanted to wrap Kurt in his arms, say he was wrong, and say he was stupid. However, his love for his girls and his desire to protect them was still stronger.

"I'm sorry," he said simply.

Kurt stood and stamped his foot, "No! Don't you want to fight for us?"

"I've been fighting for three months, Kurt! While you stood by and made pants!" Blaine bellowed, "I'm done."

Kurt grabbed his coat and his mannequin, "I'm going to sleep at the office."

"Good, because that is the only company you will ever have," Blaine said before he turned toward the girls' room, he was positive they were awake.

Kurt took one last look at Blaine and felt all of his emotions rising in his chest. He pulled on the mannequin and broke off her arm. Swearing, he threw the arm down the hall after Blaine. Kurt yelled to warn him, but when Blaine turned around, the arm hit him square in the forehead.

The last look Blaine sent Kurt while they were alone together was one of sadness, regret, and pain. Kurt still thought it was the second saddest sight he had ever seen.

----

Present Day

"Haley go!" Lisa yelled as the girl ran into the cabin of the musical theater girls. Not even five minutes previous, the entire camp walked toward the showers, leaving their cabin wide open.

Haley ran into the cabin and successfully located Natalie's belongings. "Of course," she muttered to herself as she looked around, "she would have silk sheets." She quickly found the expensive sunscreen and uncapped it, fishing around in her pocket, she found the green dye and poured it into the bottle.

Natalie had been bragging the night before about the expensive lotions and sunscreen her father had bought her while he was away on a business trip to Paris.

Haley knew Natalie had no idea what it looked like, and so she would probably get in on her skin before she realized that it would stain.

Recapping the bottle, Haley slipped out of the opposite exit from where the girls were showering.

"Success!" she shrieked with her hands held high as she ran into her cabin. "She wanted a Broadway role? She can now be Elphaba for three days!"

The girls sat in their cabin laughing about how Natalie would probably try to match her skin to the clothes she was wearing, how she would call her all so important father, and how Rachel would probably wreak havoc on everyone until someone confessed.

The shriek ripping through the camp had all of the girls running out, trying to hide their laughter.

"You disgusting witch!" Natalie was stomping over toward the group of girls, her finger waggling in Haley's face. "I cannot believe you would do such a thing! My skin is going to break out and become scaly!"

Haley was admittedly a little upset that Natalie only had a patch about the size of a dollar bill on her arm that was green. She had wanted Natalie's entire face to be green. "Calm down, it wasn't me," Haley lied, a smirk on her face.

She wanted to see her prove it at least.

"You are vile," Natalie snipped, "Completely vile."

"Who talks like that?" Haley asked, "I mean seriously?"

"Someone with dignity, class, and a proper education. You live on a farm!"

Haley glared at her, "I live on my father's coffee bean farm, yes, but we are far from farmers. I have more dignity and class than you ever will."

"You probably can't even define them," Natalie muttered before she turned and stomped back into her cabin.

"Did you see her face?" Haley laughed, though her cheeks were red.

"She's horrible," Lisa said, "But you better watch out for retaliation."

Haley was laughing until she felt a hand on her shoulder, "Oh! Counselor Rachel!"

"Haley, one more incident like that and we're going to have to call your father and have him come get you," Rachel was strict, but even she had to admit she had a soft spot for Natalie. "I don't think he would be very happy to come in from California after only two days. You are very talented and you could go far, but I think the negative energy you give off is not appropriate."

Haley wanted to roll her eyes but instead smiled, "I will try harder."

Rachel smiled, "Now hurry up, you have sculpture soon."

--------

"That looks really good," Lisa said as Haley finished the fifteenth rose for her sculpture.

"Thanks, I'm hoping this all works out. Yours looks really good too…uh, what is it?" Haley looked at the spinning wheel Lisa was working on, "a vase?"

"An urn," Lisa corrected, "for all of Natalie's dignity," she added with a laugh.

"She didn't have any to begin with," Haley said stupidly. She sometimes did feel a little behind Lisa, who was two years older than she was.

Haley had just finished placing the roses strategically around her box when she saw something flying toward her. Instinctively, she jumped and the flying object hit directly on her sculpture.

Sitting up, Haley lifted a sparkly red high heel off of her box. "That witch!" Haley squeaked, "She ruined my sculpture!"

"It was just practice," Lisa tried, glaring toward the direction of Natalie.

"But it was perfect!" Haley stood, holding the shoe, "THANKS FOR THE SHOE, NATALIE. IT IS JUST MY SIZE!"

"You give it back," Natalie ran toward the girl, "I need that for my role of Dorothy."

"Auditions aren't even until next week," Haley reminded her.

"I'm going to get the part," Natalie said with complete confidence, "I'm the best they've got."

"Ladies!" Puck said when he spotted the two volatile campers, "Shall we break this little party up and get back to our sessions?"

Natalie nodded, grabbed her shoe, and once again stomped away.

"She's horrible," Haley said before sitting down to fix her sculpture. "This isn't over!" she yelled toward Natalie who just kept on walking.

-------

"Okay ladies," Lisa said quietly, "this is the final round of Broadway Scene It! The girl who gets this question correctly gets to choose the punishment for the other."

After the suggestion that they play a game to learn to work together, all of the girls decided to play Broadway Scene It, and the person who came in second would have do whatever the winner wanted.

All of the girls purposely lost so they could see Natalie and Haley go head to head. They were currently tied and there was only one question left.

"No cheating," Natalie said through clenched teeth. She couldn't lose.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't," Haley sat confidently with her arms crossed.

"This Broadway actress has a dog named after Marilyn Monroe," Lisa asked, staring at both Natalie and Haley. She wasn't sure which one would win, and she figured either would make a good memory.

"Kristin Chenoweth?" Natalie guessed, completely sure of herself.

Lisa looked to Haley, "Your guess or is she right, in which case, you lose?"

Haley stared a few seconds longer, "Laura Bell Bundy."

Lisa shrieked, "Haley wins!"

Natalie's face lost all of its color and she turned to Ashley, "What am I going to do?" she mouthed, figuring that Haley would make her eat worms.

Haley's evil laugh reverberated off of the walls of the cabin, "Skinny dip."

"What? Where?" Natalie was standing.

"The lake," Haley said, "You better do it now before it gets any colder.

So Natalie found herself standing at the edge of the lake, a towel wrapped around her body, trembling. "This isn't funny," her teeth chattered together and she was shivering.

"Just do it you big baby," Haley had her phone out and brushed her curly hair from in front of her face, the wind was blowing it everywhere.

Natalie gasped and jumped into the lake, her towel lying on a heap on the deck.

Lisa leaned forward, grabbed the towel, and started backing away with it.

"Lisa, don't," Haley said, "that is just too mean."

"Oh come on, Anderson, I didn't think you'd be a wimp," Matt said as the music boys emerged from the trees.

"I'm not, but I'm also a decent human being," Haley was also afraid Natalie would tattle to Rachel and she would get kicked out.

Haley grabbed the towel from Lisa and went over to the edge of the dock where Natalie was and held it up while she got out. "Here," she said quietly, "I'll hold it up if you want to get dressed."

Natalie glared at her, "Why are you being nice all of a sudden?"

Haley shrugged, "About halfway over on the walk here I felt bad. Then Matt showed up, and I knew you would be even more embarrassed if he saw you."

"He's a jerk," Natalie said quietly as she dressed in a hurry.

Ashley walked up next to Haley, "Oh my god Natalie, you have curly hair!"

"What?" Natalie shrieked and raised her hand to her once straight hair, "Oh my god, my father is going to kill me!"

Haley looked in horror as Natalie's hair started getting curlier and curlier from the harsh water in the lake.

"Look what you did!" she yelled at Haley, all semblance of understanding gone.

"Don't worry, that fag of a father of yours will get it fixed as soon as you get home," Matt said from behind them.

Haley turned on her heel, "What did you say?"

"Oh didn't you know? Her dad's a fag!" Matt laughed, "my parents warned me about her and everything."

Natalie just dropped her jaw.

"Don't you dare say that!" Haley shrieked, "You are ignorant!"

"Why do you care?"

"Because my father is gay as well!" Haley felt no shame in admitting it, it was as much a part of her life as her curly hair and Nevada shaped birthmark.

Matt took a step back, "Man, you two look sorta alike, you both have fathers that are fags, and you both think you know too much," he laughed, "both of you are rejects."

From behind her, Natalie shrieked and charged at Matt, hitting him hard enough that he fell over. Haley jumped on the other half of him, her anger flaring.

Neither Haley nor Natalie ever heard the word directed at their fathers before, but it hurt them enough that their anger pushed them to the limit.

"What is going on here?" Rachel and Puck ran toward the fight on the dock.

"Natalie and Haley!" Rachel screamed, "Get off of each other!"

"I was just trying to break them apart, Puck, I swear!" Matt said, "They just keep fighting."

"Well, physical altercations are against the rules," Rachel said sternly, "I will not let you two get the entire camp a bad reputation."

"Rachel," Natalie said, the tears already forming in her eyes, "Please don't…"

"I'm sorry, but I'm moving both of you to the isolation cabin until your fathers can pick you up," Rachel said with finality, "You have an hour to pack your things up."