Author's Notes: Author's Chapter Notes: Okay, I know things are messy and I'm leaving longer between updates. Other things happening. But hopefully this should keep you going for now :)
Quinn woke up to feel the mattress dipping next to her. She rubbed at her eyes and opened them to see Blaine hurriedly fastening his trousers and pausing to rub his hands over his face.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck…” he whispered to himself over and over. She sat up, holding the sheet up to cover herself.
“Blaine? Blaine, it’s not even light, what are you doing?”
“I shouldn’t be here. Shit. I have to go. I’ve got to go somewhere. I should get Zach.”
“Blaine. He won’t be awake. And you don’t have your car, and no offence but you look like crap. At least take a shower.”
He turned to face her as he pulled his shirt on.
“How are you not freaking out, Quinn? Do you realise what happened last night?”
“I’m not an idiot, Blaine. We both had an awful day and a lot of wine. It was a mistake.”
“But Kurt-”
“What about Mike? You’re not the only one in a relationship.”
“Well, you could’ve said no.”
“You could’ve not kissed me.”
“I didn’t mean- I just-” he sat on the edge of the bed, unable to look at Quinn. “It’s all such a mess.” She picked her sweater up from the floor and slipped it on. She took his hand. “Quinn, you know I’m still-”
“God, yes. You don’t have to worry about me getting delusions of romance. You’re not that good.”
He snorted in spite of himself.
“Noted. I wish I’d never done this.”
“I know.”
“No, any of this. Kitty almost died last night, and if it hadn’t been for everything I’ve put her through then maybe she never would have done it. Maybe she wouldn’t have been so unhappy. It all would have been so much easier.”
“Blaine, is that what last night was about? Were you trying to be straight or something? Jesus, you're an idiot - wait,” she started to slide out of bed, “don’t look.”
“Seriously? You don’t think we’re a little past that?”
“I was just warning you. Don’t want to subject you to anything.”
“Good point.” Blaine continued to face the other way. “Anyway, you’re over-simplifying it.”
“Really?” She wriggled into a pair of jeans. “Sounds like you’re blaming yourself for her drinking too much.”
“Puck said she felt guilty about something.”
“It sounds like she’s done plenty of stuff to feel bad about. Why didn’t you tell me about the store?”
“I thought she would- it doesn’t matter. You don’t know what it’s been like lately. The way she talks to me, it’s like she hates me. I just think- I think I need to focus on the kids for a while instead of… anything else.”
Quinn pulled the covers straight and sat a couple of feet away from Blaine on the bed.
“It’s safe. You can look.” He turned to face her. “Look at it this way: after last night, there might not be ‘anything else’ for you to focus on anyway.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better? Fuck, he’s going to hate me. I wouldn’t blame him if he wanted to run for the hills. I cheated on him. With you.”
“At least he’ll know you didn’t enjoy it much.”
“Will you stop it? This isn’t a joke, Quinn. I know you’re not okay with any of this either.”
“Of course I’m not okay! I’ve been so caught up in this thing with Mike that I haven’t noticed what’s been happening with Kitty. You’re the one that boy called last night. You’re the one the school calls when she gets in trouble. My daughter’s a mess and I had no idea, and now I’ve totally fucked up the one thing that’s been making me happy and I feel like I deserve to have it ruined. And I think you feel exactly the same.”
Blaine’s mouth hung open for a moment. He looked down at his lap.
“She was better off before. So was Zach, so was Kurt… everything was better before.”
“No, it wasn’t. Do you feel good now? Did last night make you happy in any way?” He shook his head. “What about when you’re with Kurt? Do you wake up hating yourself?”
“We haven’t. Um. Yet.”
“What?”
“We were about to. Well. I was trying to."
"Trying to? What does that mean?"
"Then I got the phone call.”
There was a long pause. Something seemed to click in her mind.
“Well. Shit.”
“Mmm. Wait, how did you know about school calling me? I never told you about the fight.”
“She told me. Well, Zach blurted it out and I made her explain.”
“It’s so unlike her. I mean, she can take people down if she needs to, but she likes doing it with words. She’s not usually one to get her hands dirty.”
“Didn’t she tell you what it was about?”
He shook his head.
“I couldn’t get it out of her.”
She squeezed her eyes shut and pinched the bridge of her nose.
“It was about you. Some girl called you… a name, so Kitty punched her. I assumed you knew.”
Blaine stared at her in amazement.
“She did that?”
“You should probably look a little less happy about it.” She gave him the slightest hint of a smile. “I guess she can’t hate you that much.”
“But… then why the hell is she being like this?”
She reached out to put a hand on his shoulder, but he leaned away. She let her arm drop to her side.
“I’m not the one you need to ask. Look, we can’t get her for another hour. Take a shower, and I’ll take you back to Kurt’s so you can get Zach and your car and talk to him. I’ll drop Kitty at yours as soon as I can.”
Blaine rubbed at his eyes and agreed.
He got downstairs, his hair still damp, to find Quinn sitting at the kitchen table with two cups of coffee. There was a bag on the floor. He remembered that Kitty would need a change of clothes. Quinn must have packed some of hers.
“Shouldn’t we go?”
She shook her head.
“Coffee first.”
He sat down slowly, confusion settling on his face.
“This is weird.”
“Anything you and I do is a little weird, Blaine.”
“Okay. Um. Is everything-”
“It’s okay, you know. If you haven’t slept with him.”
He stood.
“You know, I’ve been meaning to cut down on caffeine-”
“Sit.”
He sat.
“You don’t have to give me the talk. I’d really rather you didn’t, actually.”
“I know you’re scared. I was terrified. We’ve only ever been with each other.”
“Quinn, please-”
“No. You need to hear this from somebody. You should take all the time you need.”
“You didn’t.”
“Maybe not, but at least I talked to my boyfriend about it first. I told him I was scared and he understood, and it was great.”
There was a pause.
“Are you going to tell him about last night?”
She nodded slowly.
“I have to. No more holding things back, either of us. Especially you. Last time you didn’t speak up, you got stuck with me for eighteen years.”
He felt a blush creeping up his neck and stared into his cup.
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not the one you need to apologise to.”
“I know. I’ll tell him everything.”
“I actually didn’t mean him.” Blaine looked up at her, and she scooted her seat closer to his. “Blaine, last night you were with me instead of him. You’ve already admitted how unhappy it made you, being with me,” he opened his mouth to argue but she held up her hand, “and you chose to be with me rather than the man you love.”
“I what?”
“I know you do. I’ve never seen you the way you are when you talk about him, when you were with him last night. Now, I don’t know if this was because of Kitty, or because you’re just scared of starting over and letting yourself be that vulnerable with someone new, but it doesn’t stop you loving him. You need to stop punishing yourself, Blaine.”
He looked at her helplessly and his eyes started to water. He knew she was right. He knew that being with Kurt made his stomach churn and his heart race and it was terrifying because Blaine knew this man might actually make him happy. When he and Quinn had separated he was sad. He was sad because the kids would be upset and because he was hurting his best friend. But the idea of losing Kurt, even now, was heart-breaking. He swallowed as a shiver rolled over his body, resting his forehead on his palm and his elbow on the table. He heard Quinn’s chair move and felt her arm drape over his shoulders.
“I’m so sorry… god, I’m so, so sorry…”
He leaned on her shoulder as she shushed him.
“I know. It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.”
He just hoped he hadn’t pulled so far away that he couldn’t go back.
*
Quinn dropped Blaine at Kurt’s with a casual ‘make good choices, kiddo’ and a gentle pat on the elbow then left to go to the hospital. He took a deep breath and walked to the door, which Zach opened.
“Is Kitty okay?”
Kurt was standing just behind him, Mai balanced on his hip, obviously wanting the answer to the same question. Blaine felt his insides go heavy just looking at him.
“Yeah, she’s gonna be fine. Your mom’s just gone to get her from the hospital, and she’s bringing her straight home so we can take care of her.”
“Are Kurt and Mai coming?”
“I think Kitty probably needs some peace and quiet today,” Kurt said, “just the three of you. You should just help your dad look after her.”
“Yeah,” Blaine nodded, “we should get back.”
Blaine kept his eyes on Zach and ushered him outside. Kurt frowned and put Mai down, muttering “Why don’t you go catch the end of Spongebob?” and lightly taking Blaine’s wrist. “Are you okay? Did you stay at Quinn’s last night?”
Blaine nodded.
“Yeah. I, uh… it was just easier. Kurt, I want to talk to you-”
“I’m glad you two are getting on better. Maybe if she’s coming round, then Kitty-”
Blaine’s stomach squeezed. Kurt looked so hopeful and warm and worried about him, and Blaine didn’t want that look to go away. He just couldn’t stand to make Kurt hate him just yet. One more day where this one good thing wouldn’t fall apart.
“Yeah. Maybe. Look, it’s been a long couple of days. I think we just need some time.”
“Of course. Look, if there’s anything I can do-”
“Thanks. We should probably go.”
Kurt frowned. He slid his hand down to tangle it with Blaine’s, and although Blaine held his back it felt different. Not forced like last night, but doubtful, apprehensive.
“Sure. Well. Call me.”
Blaine put on some kind of smile and nodded. Kurt started to lean in for a kiss, but remembered what he’d said last night about pushing him. Zach wasn’t the problem anymore, since he’d been asking over breakfast if they were boyfriends (‘okay, technically it was a date, but we’re, um, friends. Eat your cereal.’), but he started to wish it was as simple as keeping it a secret. He knew last night that he should have stopped Blaine, should have talked to him, but it was hard to think clearly with a gorgeous, albeit anxious man grinding against his crotch. And everything with Kitty just made him think Blaine would be better off without the complication of a relationship. And maybe he and Mai would be too. But maybe he was just exhausted.
He gave his hand a squeeze which was eagerly returned as Blaine bit his lip, and Zach waved goodbye in blissful ignorance. He ran his fingers through his hair as he watched them drive away, then padded back into the living room. He flopped down next to Mai and pulled her onto his lap.
*
“Dad, are you letting me win?” Zach asked, stabbing at the buttons on his controller. “You could at least pretend to try.”
“What?” Blaine had just been squeezing the plastic thing in his hands, barely aware there was even a game to play. “Oh, sorry. I’m just worried about your sister.”
He was. Just because his stomach was still turning at the thought of what happened last night, and what Kurt would think, how differently he was bound to look at him once he knew – that didn’t mean he was any less torn up about Kitty. Just as he spoke, Quinn’s car pulled up. Blaine jumped up and ran to the door, and Zach rolled his eyes and pressed pause.
“Hey, you two,” he called from the door, slipping his shoes on and stepping outside. Quinn walked around to help Kitty out of her seat. There was some colour in her cheeks, and she was in jeans and a too-big jumper instead of the hospital gown. She actually let Quinn hold her hand as they walked to the house. She paused when she reached Blaine, dragging her gaze away from the ground and up to his eyes. He smiled at her, her hair still a little matted, her eyes still smeared with makeup. “Morning, sweetheart.”
She didn’t say anything; just stepped closer, slowly wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest. He stilled for a second, eyes wide with surprise, but quickly closed them and hugged her back. He stroked her hair and kissed her temple, and did what he could right there to warm up her trembling frame. When he opened his eyes, he saw Quinn smiling at them.
Kitty still said nothing.
“I’ll leave you to rest. Look after yourself, honey.” Kitty turned to nod to her for a moment and turned straight back to Blaine. “Zachary, don’t you dare tell me you’re too old to give your mom a kiss goodbye!” Zach popped out, squeezing past Blaine and Kitty with a grimace, and hugged Quinn, even kissing her on the cheek. She stroked his back and kissed the top of his head a couple of times, ruffling his hair affectionately. “Come on. You too.”
Kitty let go of Blaine and turned to face her. Her normal glare faded in a heartbeat, and she hugged her mother, resting her chin on her shoulder.
“Bye, Mom. Thanks for bringing me back.”
“No problem. Don’t you dare scare us like that again.” She kissed her cheek. “Love you, Kit.”
Kitty nodded and sniffed. She rubbed at her eye with the heel of her hand. Blaine put a hand on her shoulder.
“Do you want to go to bed, or-”
“I think I’m gonna take a bath first. Feel kinda gross.”
He smiled.
“Go for it. Should be plenty of hot water.” She didn’t smile, not yet, but she didn’t scowl or look like she was on the brink of tears either. It felt like progress. “Love you,” he called out as she walked upstairs. She nodded and disappeared into the bathroom.
“Dad, can I finish thrashing you now?”
“Sure. Tell you what, go get yourself a drink or something and I’ll be right in.”
Zach grinned.
“Kay. Bye, Mom.”
“Bye, sweetie.”
Blaine and Quinn smiled at each other.
“She’s okay. She’s alive and she’s awake and she’s okay.”
She nodded.
“Take care of her, alright?”
He nodded back. They didn’t hug. She simply walked back to the car, and he closed the door. He turned to see two glasses of orange juice on the coffee table, and Zach bouncing up and down on the couch, controller in hand.
Kitty eventually wandered downstairs in her pyjamas, damp hair braided to one side. Blaine smiled up at her.
“Hey. How are you feeling?”
“Tired,” she answered, finally looking straight into his eyes, “exhausted, actually." Blaine's heart squeezed in his chest. She had to be exhausted after fighting for this long. She wasn't the only one. "And hungry.”
“Oh, right.” She had had her stomach pumped, after all. “Well, I’ll get you something to eat.”
“You don’t have to-”
“Kitty, let him. Come and play. The best thing about being sick is that Dad lets you play video games all day and brings you food.”
“Zach, Kitty’s had a long-”
“Only if you wanna get your ass kicked. Give me that thing.”
She sat next to her brother, legs tucked up on the sofa, and Blaine smiled as he watched them together. Kitty looked so young with no make-up and her old smile creeping back onto her face. Zach yelled as Kitty leaned on him hard, squashing him into the cushions.
“Kitty, get off me! Dad, she’s cheating!”
“What did I do? There’s no rules about how I sit. Maybe I just want to snuggle up to my baby brother.”
“Oh, gross! And I'm not a baby! Dad!”
Blaine grinned at them. Kitty was smirking back at them.
“Be nice to your sister, Zach. She’s been in the hospital.”
“I’ll put her back in the hospital!”
“I’d like to see you try, squirt!”
“Please no more hospitals for a while, either of you. Zach, you said you wanted a challenge.”
He walked back towards them, putting a sandwich and an apple on a plate on the coffee table in front of Kitty. He sat on the other couch, happy to relax and watch the kids messing around like they used to. She gave him a nod. He nodded back.
“You’re so lucky. I told you this is the best thing about being sick. You get to stay home and play video games in your pyjamas all day.”
“And what exactly are you doing that’s so different?” Kitty asked. “I mean, other than losing.”
“I’m in normal clothes.”
“Well,” Blaine grinned, “why don’t we get changed? PJ day?”
“Kitty won’t want to. We haven’t done that since we were kids.”
She smiled at her little brother in a way she hadn’t in months, and Blaine smiled at both of them.
“What do you say, Kit? Too old to hang out with us for a day?”
“Well, what are you guys waiting for? Zach, if you don’t hurry up I’ll crash your car while you’re gone.”
Zach scrambled to his feet and ran upstairs, dropping his controller on the floor. Blaine reached out for Kitty’s knee, hesitated, and pulled back.
“You okay?”
She nodded.
“Thanks for the food.”
He smiled and went upstairs. When he came back down, dressed as promised in his only matching set of pyjamas, the sofas had been turned around and stripped of their cushions, and were now being used to hold up a blanket canopy over Kitty and Zach’s heads. He could hear them both giggling helplessly.
“You guys made a fort without me?”
They were playing again.
“Quit whining and get under here. You might miss me kicking Kitty’s butt.”
“You are not!”
“Am so!”
“Well, I’m sick. It doesn’t count.”
“Whatever, that’s just an excuse.”
“Maybe I’m just lulling you into a false sense of security before I swoop in and beat you.”
“What’s lulling?”
Blaine smiled at them both and crawled under the blankets with them.
“It means you better watch your back before she catches up with you.”
Zach’s tongue stuck out and he frantically stabbed at buttons. Kitty poked half-heartedly at one or two, grinning at Zach again. Blaine leaned against the back of an armchair, took a deep breath and enjoyed the noise of his kids goofing around, bickering and playing, unable to remember the last time he’d heard it.
It didn’t take long for Zach to get sleepy. The previous night had been rough for him, being dragged to the hospital and back to Kurt’s house, and worrying more about Kitty than he would admit. Blaine switched the TV off and Zach yawned, stretched and snuggled into Kitty’s side, fast asleep. She stiffened at first, but eventually allowed it. She even rested her cheek on top of his head and closed her eyes.
“So…” Blaine started, terrified that one false move could make her shut off again, “Is everything okay? Do you want anything else to eat?”
She shook her head and put a hand on her stomach.
“Not yet. Still not feeling great.”
“Oh, sure. Sure. Are you cold? Can I get you a blanket or something? I can take him upstairs if you want-”
She shook her head again.
“I’m fine. And he’s fine. S’kinda nice.”
“Okay. Look, Kitty, I understand if you’re tired, but should we- can we talk? About everything? I just… I’m pretty lost here. One minute you hate me, and now this. Since your mom and I broke up, since I told you, you know… about me, you’ve been so angry, and it’s not like you. I know everything’s changed, but is it really upsetting you this much?”
“No. It’s not- I…” she gave up and looked down at her lap.
“I’m not mad, I swear. And I don’t hate you.”
“You’re supposed to be mad. You should have been yelling at me. You should have locked me away with no dinner and no friends and no TV and-”
“Kitty, no. I mean, do you think for a second that grounding you would have actually worked? You’re not a little kid any more. I’m just worried. I miss you,” his hand was trembling as it edged closer to hers, “I miss you so much. This afternoon, it’s been like having you back. It’s like we’re us again. What’s been so different?”
“You never yell at me.”
“Um… I know? I don’t like yelling.”
“You used to. You screamed at me when I was little, when I didn’t look before I crossed the street, or if I wandered away from you and Mom at the park, or that time we were at the lake and I got too close to the water.”
“That was because I didn’t want you to get hurt. I wanted to protect you, Kitty, that’s my job.”
“I’m sorry,” there was a crack in her voice. Blaine shuffled around the coffee table to sit next to her, and took her hand.
“No, honey, it’s okay. Everything’s fixed now. Artie’s opening the store again tomorrow.”
“No, Dad,” she squeezed his hand, finally forcing herself to look up at him, “I’m really sorry. For everything. I’m sorry for the store, and for getting into that fight-” he reached up to stroke her hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear, “and for being such a bitch to you.” He started to shake his head, but she kept talking. “No. I’ve been awful. I know I have. I’m sorry. You should hate me. You should have screamed at me. I wanted you to scream at me.”
“Okay, first of all, I could never hate you. Ever. I know I haven’t shouted at you or anything, but it’s not because I don’t care. Honestly, I was scared of what you’d shout back.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“I thought it was just the divorce. Everyone said you were doing it for attention, so I thought maybe if I acted like you weren’t getting to me- but I’ve never felt worse. God, I missed you,” he said again, stroking her hair, “I just thought if I held on too tight you’d try harder to get away. And that would kill me.”
She sniffed, her breath jumping in her throat.
“I really am sorry,” her voice cracked, and he was about to tell her it was okay again when he heard her whisper, “I’m sorry you were so unhappy.”
Her face fell again as soon as realisation dawned on his.
“Sweetheart, no. You don’t have to-”
“I’m sorry you got stuck with us. If it hadn’t been for me you and Mom never would have gotten married. You could have been with someone else, someone better. Someone you actually loved.”
“Stop it.”
“No. I saw you with the Kurt the other night. You were never like that with Mom.”
“I’ll always love her. She was my best friend.”
“Eighteen years, Dad,” she’d stopped pretending not to cry now, “you were miserable all that time and you never said anything. Because of me.” She noticed him frowning, about to mention Zach, “Come on, by the time he came along it was too late. I was the one that trapped you.”
“Kitty, stop-”
“No, Dad-”
“Shh,” he nodded at Zach even though they both knew he wasn’t going to wake up any time soon. “My turn now. Listen to me.”
She sniffed.
“Kay.”
“Kitty. I’m not sorry. I am not one bit sorry that you’re here.”
“But-”
“But nothing. You and your brother are my favourite things in the whole world.”
“What about Kurt?”
“That’s… it doesn’t matter. Anyway, if it hadn’t been for Zach’s play I wouldn’t have met him in the first place. You guys are my best wingmen.”
She snorted.
“You’re welcome. I guess. But you could have had kids you actually wanted.”
“They would have been different. I don’t want different kids. I want you.”
She shifted closer to him and leaned on his chest. Zach wriggled to lean the other way, ended up curled into a ball on the floor and still didn’t wake up. Blaine wrapped his arms around Kitty, smelled her hair, and pulled her close. He told himself to be cautious, that things were still fragile, but it felt like they were both finally home.
“But, Dad,” she said without moving away from the warmth of his unmistakably dad-smelling pyjamas, “you know the other day, when you told me to be careful? With Puck?”
“Mm?”
“Well – I don’t know. It was like… like we were this big mistake you couldn’t go back on.”
“In fairness, I meant to be safe from STDs too.”
“Dad.”
“Kitty. I’m not going to advocate teen pregnancy. It’s scary. It’s expensive. It doesn’t always work out like it did with you two. But that doesn’t change the fact that being your dad makes me happier than anything else.” He kissed her hair. “You got that?”
She nodded against his chest.
“Yeah.”
“Good. We just had to grow up quickly. I don’t want that for you. I want you to keep being a kid for as long as possible. That way I can keep being your dad.”
She sighed and he could tell she was rolling her eyes. He smiled anyway.
“You can always be my dad, Dad.”
“Thanks.”
“So you and Kurt wouldn’t want to- you know- have another one?”
“What? Kitty, we’ve hardly been on a real date. And it might already be over. I don’t know.”
“But say things work out. If you two were together, really together, would you want more kids?”
He paused, daring to let himself to imagine it for a second.
“If they could all be as great as you and Zach, I’d have a hundred.”
“You like him, then?”
“Kitty, I’m trying to tell you I love you; now will you stop asking me about my- about Kurt?”
She finally smiled. It wasn’t shy or reserved any more; there were teeth and dimples and a crinkled forehead.
“Your boyfriend?”
“Maybe not for long. I might have fucked it up.”
“Sorry.”
“Not your fault. This one’s all on me.”
“Dad?" He looked down at her. "I love you too.”
He kissed her head again.
“I know.”
Zach started snoring softly as his head tilted back on the cushions.
“Maybe he needs to go to bed.”
“Yeah,” he gave her hand a squeeze, “I’ll take him. You want anything else? Water?”
“I wouldn’t say no to a martini,” she shrugged, and Blaine would have worried if she hadn’t gone so pale and swallowed so hard at the mere mention of alcohol. He smirked. “It’s not funny. I could’ve died.”
“You were the one joking, not me. Either way, I’m glad you didn’t.” He kissed her forehead one more time before giving Zach a nudge. “Come on, kid. Bed time.”
After dragging Zach to bed, Blaine came back into the living room to see Kitty with a blanket pulled over her lap, tapping at her phone. She was smiling.
“Is that who I think it is?”
She blushed.
“Maybe.”
“You scared that poor kid to death last night. I like him.”
“Mmm.”
He sat next to her again.
“Something wrong?”
“No. Just- he’s not what I thought he’d be.”
“How’d you meet him?”
“You know Jake in my class?” Blaine nodded. “Well, they’re half-brothers. He was supposedly the ‘responsible adult’ at a party once. He was supposed to be part of the whole rebel thing I had going. All I knew was that he was older than me and had a motorbike, and that would have been perfect to piss you off-”
“But he’s delightful.”
“Exactly. That was the whole problem. He was meant to be this badass older guy, but it turns out he’s about as scary as a bunny rabbit chewing on a dandelion. Then sneezing because it forgot it has hay fever. And falling over backwards because the sneeze took it by surprise. It all kind of backfired.”
Blaine grinned.
“You like him.”
She nodded.
“He looks at me the way you look at Kurt. It’s gross.” She expected Blaine to laugh but his smile seemed to fade. “He’s… he’s kind of great, actually.”
“Good. Maybe now you’ll let him come in the house some time.”
“Maybe. If he’s good.” Blaine gave a single, weak laugh. Kitty ducked down to catch his eyes, which had drifted down to his knees. “So… has something happened with you and Kurt? You normally get all happy when you talk about him.”
“Oh. It doesn’t matter right now. I’ve probably ruined everything there anyway.”
“So fix it. You need to fix it. Use me as an excuse if you want.”
“Since when do you care so much?”
“Since I saw you cutting up his kid’s dinner. And making out with him in the kitchen. It was kind of nice seeing that stupid smile on your face. Fix it.”
“You… saw that. Oh.”
“Yeah. It’s okay. Whatever helps you get the dishes done.”
“Right. Well. Yeah.”
“So what did you do?”
“It’s complicated.”
“You’re pretty good at complicated, Dad. If you can figure stuff out with a bratty teenager, you can probably persuade your boyfriend to forgive you.”
“He’s- okay. Thanks, Kitty.”
“Don’t mention it. Can we watch cartoons? I wanna keep being a kid for the night.”
Blaine grinned and pulled down to lean on his chest again, kissing the top of her head.
“Sounds perfect to me.”