Blaine had figured out on the day that he met Kurt that there was no such thing as a peaceful moment that passed when he was around unless he was sound asleep, so when there was such a racquet from downstairs that it sounded like the floor was going to come down under his feet, he did not jump up to escape the disaster-to-be, but instead looked at Burt, who, as always, shrugged his shoulders and pushed his nose back into his newspaper. Soon enough, all the hassle was revealed to them when Kurt appeared at the top of the stairs, lugging what looked like a pile of folded and crumpled fabric behind him. "Daddy!" He called into the living room, and Burt raised his brows, but did not lift his head from the paper. "The rain is all dried up now! Can Blaine and I go camping?"

Burt still didnt look up at his son, but held up one thumb to give him the okay. When his eyes briefly lifted to Blaines shocked expression, he chuckled and shook his head, "He doesnt hate the outdoors. He hates being dirty. He couldnt go camping without a tent." Finally lifting his head to Kurt, who was pulling the tent up the stairs, he said, "Kurt, put that down. Ill go out and set that up for you guys. Youll break a nail if you try and Ill never hear the last of it."

Kurt happily squealed, glad to be rid of the polyester mess. He ran back downstairs to collect his other things, while Burt stood and took a few seconds to stretch out his muscles. With a heavy sigh, he walked over to the stairs to collect the tent, and he dragged it outside with him. On his way out, he playfully winked at Blaine, "Good luck, kid. Youll need it. Kurt has his own way of camping."

Blaine didnt know what that meant, and he wasnt sure if he wanted to find out. Getting up from his comfortable chair, he started to head down to Kurt, but before he got to the bottom floor, Kurt reappeared with his arms full of the softest blankets and pillows. Giving Blaine a smile, Kurt walked up the stairs to get to him, and he said, "I have to have my warm blankets to keep my toes from freezing! Daddy says Im crazy for bringing blankets with me, but sleeping bags are just so stuffy!"

Taking the blankets from Kurt, Blaine stepped down a few of the stairs, nodding when Kurt said, "Would you take those out to the tent, please? Ill be in the kitchen if you need me." He turned away from Kurt and walked over to the front door, going out into the blackness with only the fireflies to guide his path. Hearing cloth shifting and rods twisting, Blaine followed the sounds and found Burt in the middle of the yard, pushing the top of the tent up.

The tent was very large, at least twice as tall as Blaine, and wide enough to hold five people. Burt unzipped the door and revealed a very room area inside, and he set a lantern on the floor. Turning around, Burt lowered his eyes to Blaine, and a crooked smirk tugged at his mouth. "Kurt had to have the nicest tent, didnt he? Hes pretty silly, huh? But the blankets and the tent arent even half of the way he camps." When Kurt came out of the house with a tray in his hands, Burt glanced over his shoulder at him and said, "Hey, bud. I want you to listen up, okay? Ive got some rules." Scrubbing Kurts hair before he bent down to place the tray of snacks inside the tent, Burt crossed his arms over his chest, "I want you guys to stay in the tent. No playing around outside when its so dark... that means no climbing trees or anything. Take the lantern with you if one of you goes inside, and I want you guys to stay together. If one of you comes in, the other does, too. Alright? No staying up too late. No scary stories." Wrapping his son in one arm, he rubbed his back, "Have fun, okay? Ill see both of you in the morning."

"Goodnight, Daddy." Kurt called after him as he started off for the house, and Blaine waved after him. Putting his hands on his hips, Kurt bounced on his toes, and he gave Blaine a beaming smile, "Lets go inside before the cold gets our snacks!"

Holding the flap open for Kurt, Blaine heard his quiet thanks as he crawled inside, and Blaine went in on his heels, zipping up the door behind them. As Blaine brushed out the blankets and fluffed the pillows, Kurt picked up a glass of cider and sipped the warm drink. "Blaine, are you hungry? I have cider and hot chocolate... and yummy smores! Some people say youre supposed to heat them over a fire, but then they get crunchy and burnt! The best kind are heated up in the oven for a few minutes! My maman makes them like that for me when we go camping. And then the chocolate is melted, and the graham cracker is so warm, and the marshmallow is so gooey and soft!"

As if hed talked himself into eating one, Kurt picked one up from the platter and bit into the golden cracker. From either of the sides, marshmallow and chocolate squirted out on his cheeks, making him giggle as he poked his tongue out to lick it up. Leaning closer to Kurt, Blaine kissed off the rest of the smeared chocolate, and Kurt burst into laughter. "Very good." Kurt held up the other half of his smore to Blaine, and he tried to swallow the rest of it down in one bite to avoid making the messy goo gush all over his face.

Chuckling around the marshmallow that stuck to his teeth, Blaine picked up a steaming chocolate drink and laid back on the pillows and blankets. Kurt dropped beside of him, kicking his feet up and wiggling them at the ceiling of their tent. Resting his hands under his chin, Kurt stared at Blaine from under his thick lashes, and he smiled when Blaine licked a drop of chocolate from his bottom lip. "I just love camping because the sounds of nature are so beautiful. The crickets chirping... and the breeze blowing... and the leaves shaking. It gives you time to think." Once Blaine finished off his drink, Kurt scooted closer to him and collapsed on top of his chest. "But your heartbeat sounds more beautiful than all of those things."

Running his fingers through Kurts soft hair, Blaine looked up at the ceiling, and even though he couldnt see the lovely things that Kurt spoke about, he could hear each noise, and he did agree that being out here was so soothing. "Your dads right." He mumbled, and Kurt lifted his head, showing Blaine a pair of gorgeous, blue eyes. "You are crazy, Kurt." Poking the tip of Kurts nose, he gave him a teasing smirk, "Youre crazy and silly and even mad. Youre spontaneous... Nothing is ever predictable with you. You deserve only the best... even when it comes to camping. Ill never, ever understand you... the way that beautiful... crazy... mind works." When Kurts blond lashes lowered and then raised again, Blaine brushed his fingers over them, loving the way they tickled him. "And Im okay with that."

Kurts nose wrinkled, and the corners of his eyes crinkled. He stretched his neck so he could press a kiss to Blaines lips, "Youre crazy, too!" He laughed, his body shaking in Blaines arms as he wound them around him, "Youre just better at hiding it, silly." They both snorted together, rubbing their faces against each other and kissing each others noses and cheeks. After the noises they were making faded away, they were left again with the quiet of the night. They tightened their arms around each other, and then Kurt broke the silence by giggling again, "My daddy didnt want us to tell scary stories because he worries Ill have nightmares. But, when youre around, there are no creepy crawlies!"

Blaines eyes playfully narrowed at Kurt as he celebrated the lack of monsters by tossing his hands up. Running his fingers up and down Kurts sides, he snorted when Kurt squealed, "You sound so confident that no monsters will get you while you sleep!" He grabbed Kurts kicking feet and scratched the bottoms of them, making Kurt scream with laughter.

Kurt tried his best to kick him off, but no avail when Blaine pinned his squirming body down with his own. "Blaine!" He cried, tears squirting from his eyes as his cheeks turned pink. "No! No tickle monster!" Wriggling for freedom, Kurt drew in a few breaths when Blaine finally let go of his feet, and he opened his shining eyes. He smiled up at him, and then he pulled Blaines head down so he could peck his cheek. "I love you!"

Flopping to the side so he could regain his own breath, Blaine pulled the blankets up to their chins, and he whispered, "I love you, too." He tugged Kurt to his chest and rested a hand on his belly, gently stroking him from his chest to his sweet spot, his belly button, which made him coo every time Blaine circled it with his finger. Tilting his chin down to Kurts face, Blaine muttered, "Can we go camping more often? I like the way you camp."

They both laughed again, and Kurt threw his hands apart, "Only the best for me!"

Hunter had never been afraid of the dark because he knew that nothing was lurking under his bed, or looming in his closet, or waiting behind the door for him to shut his eyes. The only thing that had ever startled him at night was the screams of Archer when he woke up after a nightmare and feared that the monster that had bothered him there had followed him into his wake. Within seconds after the shrieking and crying started, he heard his daddy lift up from his own bed and shuffle down the hallway. The light was always flipped on, and hed sat down on the edge of the bed and bounced and rubbed Archer until he settled down. After a few times of this, a nightlight was installed in their room, and plenty of stuffed animals were set on their bed to make Archer feel safer. But even this hadnt worked, and it wasnt until Hunter finally closed the space between them and wrapped Archer up in his arms that he didnt wake up throughout the night.

Ever since that night, Hunter had learned to be the strong one between him and Archer, the one that had to protect Archer against his own worries. He figured out how to read Archers many, and swiftly altering, expressions as easily as he read his own hands. And Archer started to depend on him, running to him when he needed help, hiding behind him when he was spooked. Very little had scared Hunter, but now he needed Archer to save him. He didnt know how long had passed since hed been stuffed in that stove, but from the fairytale hed once read and never picked up again because it had made Archer cry, the dreaded Hansel and Gretel, he knew that it didnt take long to cook a child. Hunter had thought about death before, when his uncle had taken him aside and shown him the paintings that his Evie had created. Hed wondered if his uncle missed him too terribly, and from the pained look on his face, Hunter had understood how very much his uncle had loved the man he spoke about with such kind words.

Tears bubbled up in the corners of Hunters eyes as he thought of his family wearing those awful expressions when he was mentioned, those looks of agony that he was dead. Hunter didnt want to die. He wanted to grow up to be like his parents, and he wanted to visit the grave of his uncles past lover, to see just how much he meant to him, and he wanted to one day marry the little boy that he had loved since the first smile he had given to him. Hunter had once imagined Archer as he got older, on their wedding day, his body wrapped in the same dress that their père wore on his. Archer would still have his freckles that dotted his round cheeks, and he wouldnt be quite as thin as their père, but he would be just as gorgeous. But Hunter would never see him at an older age, nor himself, and the tears finally dribbled down his could feel himself slowly giving out as he choked and burned, and he finally laid back against the wall, sparks of pain bursting through his back. If only he could have just told his family that he was sorry.

Hunter didnt know if he had died or not when he heard something swing open, and a rush of cold air hit his face. Maybe he was forever trapped in his mind, left only to think about the things he should have done differently. His body recoiled against the feeling of something scraping against it, his skin smarting against the thing that touched it. Soon after hed been lifted, his body was carried somewhere, and he was dropped onto cool sheets that stuck to the open and bloody wounds on his arms and legs. Groaning, Hunter let his head drop to the side, and he tried to peel his lids up, but maybe he already had his eyes open, because he couldnt see anything but a whitish light. Blinking his eyes a few times, Hunter panicked when his vision didnt clear up, and he flung his throbbing hands up to his face. Clawing at his cheeks and feeling the roughness where his fingers had obviously been burnt, Hunter felt his way up to his eyes, and he gasped because his lids were up.

He blinked again, and still he could see nothing but that fading light. Knowing that it couldnt have been his vision-Karofsky had to have done something to the lights in the room, Hunter rolled off to the side and yelped when his body clunked to the floor. He crawled around for a few seconds before he forced himself up, even though every movement made him growl. Bringing himself up to his feet, Hunter walked a few inches forward and yowled when he hit his nose on a wall. He fell back, but shot his hand out and held onto the wall as he staggered through the room. He wondered where Karofsky was, if he was standing right in front of him and shining a flashlight into his eyes. Pushing himself through the room, Hunter felt his way through what he thought was a doorway, and he thought about the layout of the house and what he remembered of it. To his right was the bathroom and another room he hadnt been in, and to his left were more rooms he hadnt been in. If he angled himself a little to the right and kept walking, he would end up at the staircase.

He went toward the staircase, and he inhaled sharply when he stumbled over the first step. Slowing his steps, he put his foot down on what he hoped was the next stair, but he tripped again and plopped onto his butt. A sob broke from his mouth. He didnt understand what was happening to him. Scooting the rest of the way down, Hunter made a low noise when he dropped off the last stair. He boosted himself back up and felt his way around the bottom floor, and he immediately ran into another wall. Sliding his hands down the wall to see if he could figure out where he was, he furrowed his brows when he came across a doorknob. Not caring if Karofsky was right behind him, waiting to see what he would do, Hunter turned the knob and shoved his entire body against the door. He was flung out into the bitter air that nipped at his burning skin, and after he caught his balance again, he darted away from that house. His foot caught on a twig that was sticking up from the snow, and he sank into the heavy blanket of white, but he kept going because he didnt know what else to do. He had to get away.

Screaming when he ran into a scratchy tree, Hunter jerked backwards and turned his body away from it. He was aggravated because he didnt know if he was going in circles. Karofsky was probably waiting for him to wobble his way right into his arms. In his rage over the light that blinded him, Hunter thought about the horrible things he wanted to do to Karofsky, to take revenge for all of the damage hed put him through. When he ran right into what felt like a piece of metal, he collapsed to the ground and stayed that way for a few seconds, violently sobbing on his hands and knees. Sitting down on his bottom, Hunter gasped because what sounded like wood creaked under him. He quickly moved to the side, and he grabbed the thing hed tripped over, a steel bar that connected to a thin slab of wood. Almost nervous of what he was touching, Hunter pulled at the bar, and he raised his eyebrows when the wood came up from the ground.

He knew that hed probably found the sewer or something like that, but he still reached down to where the wood had once been. His hand went through an opening, and he felt around until he came across a set of stairs. Leaning toward the opening, Hunter swung one foot onto the stairs, and he pushed himself down one by one, letting the wood close after him. It smelled musty in whatever this room was, and it was so cold that Hunter shivered. After he slid off the stairs, Hunter stood up on something hard and hollow, maybe poorly laid concrete. He walked a few inches in every direction, trying to understand where he was at. In his search of the room, he bumped into a dresser, and he brushed his hands over it, getting a layer of dust up. Brushing his hands on his ruined pants, Hunter kept walking and suddenly ran into something springy. He put his hands on it and pressed down, and he lowered his brows when he realized that it was a bed. Somehow, he realized, hed found a cellar that was done up like a bedroom. He wondered if Karofsky knew this was here, but shrugged that off because it hadnt been used in so long, and even if he did, he doubted that Karofsky would have much interest in it.

Smiling at the little room hed found, Hunter kept exploring the safe place that had gone untouched for so long. Until his eyes cleared up and he could try to escape again, Hunter thought that he could stay in here to avoid Karofsky. He went back to the dresser, and he reached in his pocket for his notebook. Laying the book on the wood, Hunter rubbed the charred cover, hoping that the pages hadnt been destroyed from the heat. Luckily, the pages felt fine to him, even though he couldnt see them. He picked out a pencil from his pocket, and he turned to a page he hadnt marked on yet. Putting the pencil against the paper, he started to write, knowing how to form the letters one by one. It took a little longer to get out a page of words, but, at last, he pulled his pencil up and ran his fingers over the scratches. Once he was done, he closed the book, and he turned back around to face his room. He couldnt see this place, but his parents had taught him to be appreciative, and he knew that he could love it here. At least, it was the only place that would keep him alive.

Blaine couldnt sleep that night, no matter how he tossed and turned, or pulled his blankets up or down. Beside of him, his husband slept peacefully with their baby in his arms, the only way they got through the night without Archer bursting into shrill screams because he didnt have his Hunter there to comfort him. Not wanting to disturb them and make Archer fuss because hed been woken up when he was still tired, Blaine pushed the blankets aside and slowly sat up, feeling his muscles strain because his body was so exhausted, but his mind wouldnt stop. He started to stand up on wobbly legs, but he jerked backwards at the sudden blare of ringing. Grabbing his blinking phone before it could awake his husband and son, Blaine silenced the ringer, and he stared at the name that had his head in such a tizzy.

Getting to his feet, Blaine carried his phone out of the bedroom, knowing that he couldnt avoid this anymore. He had to remind himself that his brother meant no harm when it came to his frequent calls that, one after another, Blaine rejected. After all, he was the one who had given him this perfect gift in the first place. Once he was in the hallway, he looked back at the two on the bed, frowning at the way Kurt murmured and snuggled Archer closer to him. At the warmth that bundled him up tighter, Archer twitched his foot, and then he sighed, and all was silent again. Blaine glimpsed back down at his phone, and he lifted it to his ear, walking farther away from the bedroom before he finally answered it. "Cooper?" He mumbled, part of him hoping that his brother would say that hed been offered a thousand movies to shoot, that there was no way he could ever take Archer back. Or, at the very least, that he would be in India for another ten years. It was all Blaine could hope for.

"Blaine?" Cooper said, almost as if hed forgotten Blaines name and was questioning if he had the right guy. "I didnt know if you would answer. You havent... since Archers birthday." Blaine didnt say anything to that, and Cooper obviously didnt expect him to, because he went on, "Are you okay? Blaine, I havent heard from you in almost a year."

Blaine held his silence again, walking down the stairs on heavy feet that dragged him down each step. Through the glass walls, he saw the blackness of the night, with a flurry of snow lighting up the darkness with flashes of white. Before he said a word, he went over to the couch and sat down, staring at the endless sky outside. Somewhere in the world, his brother was looking at that same sky, and somewhere back in Ohio, his babys body was resting under that sky. "Im fine." Blaine said, wishing he could have asked Cooper if he could keep his baby instead.

"Oh." was all Cooper said. There was something tense in his tone, the same way he had spoken to Blaine when he first found out that Blaine was clawing his hands apart. Blaine felt the same way he did on that day, somewhere between gratefulness and hatefulness for his brother, that he had given him the baby, and now he was trying to take him back. He was angry that Cooper had something over his head, like he did when he had helped Blaine with his hands, but could also hurt him because he knew that Blaine was ripping them apart. "Blaine? Do you hate me?"

And, like always, his brother was able to read his mind. "No." He muttered, narrowing his eyes and blocking out the images of the snow falling. He didnt know what to say to his brother, so he turned his eyes up to the ceiling, where his husband and his baby were still sleeping soundly. "Do you hate me, Cooper?"

"No." Cooper said quickly, and then he followed with, "Blaine, I just dont understand. You practically blocked me out of your life... Ive never even spoken to my baby." Blaines jaw hardened at the way Cooper claimed the baby that Blaine had raised since the day of his birth. "Whats going on with you, Blaine?"

Blaine rubbed his jaw with his knuckles, feeling his stubble scratch his rough fingers. He wanted to tell him that nothing was going on, that he had just fallen in love with a baby, something that Cooper had never imagined him capable of. Because Cooper thought him so unfeeling, he seemed to not even consider that Blaine might have gotten attached to the baby who hed held before anyone else, who hed seen the blue eyes of before anyone else. And Blaine probably could have made a better effort to call Cooper and have Archer speak to him, and he probably could have sent Cooper pictures of the baby, but he still wouldnt know Archer the way that Blaine did.

"Listen," Cooper muttered through an exasperated sigh, "I have a meeting to get to. I have to go... not that you want to talk to me, anyway." Blaine still didnt say anything, so Cooper finished the one-sided conversation, "I love you... you know. Ill talk to you later... maybe." The call clicked off, and Blaine slowly lowered the phone to his pocket.

"You have a lot of meetings to go to." Blaine whispered to no one, getting back up to his feet. Growing more weary but knowing that he still wouldnt be able to sleep, especially now, he headed back over to the stairs and climbed up to the top floor. He returned to his bedroom, where, to his surprise, a pair of blue eyes colored the white bed.

The tiny baby whimpered for Blaine, a red lip puckering as those blue eyes became damp. Hurrying over to the side of the bed, Blaine bent over Archer, who stretched his arms up for Blaine. He lifted him from Kurts limp arms, and he rested him against his shoulder. "Shh... Daddys here. Daddys got you, baby." Gently patting his bottom, he felt him push his damp face against his neck, hiding from the darkness.

Tears leaked from Archers moist eyes, and he incoherently peeped through a slobbery mouth, "H-Hunner... I w-want Hunner." As Blaine desperately rocked his body in his failed attempts to calm him down, Kurt blinked his own blue eyes open, and he instantly sat up with a concerned sound when he realized what had stirred him.

Touching Archers back, Kurt rubbed small circles, and he turned his worried eyes to Blaines face. But neither of them had anything to say because there was nothing to say.