Burt Hummel looked weary, but not quite as frail as his wife. Elizabeth was sick. She still stepped lightly around the house, singing to herself and playing with Kurt every day, but even an outsider could tell she was falling apart. Today had been the worst.

Just two weeks ago, they had been at the hospital when they heard the news. She had stage 4 Lymphoma. The doctor had only given her about a month to live. Elizabeth, always positive, continued to live her life the same way she always had. Burt, on the other hand, became a shadow of himself. He stopped eating, stopped sleeping, and would rarely join in whenever his wife would begin to sing to Kurt.

Now, only fourteen days since they had heard the news, Elizabeth had to be rushed to the hospital. Blaine and Kurt had been watching Aladdin in the playroom when Burt hollered from downstairs, his voice cracking. "Boys! Get your shoes on, we have to go!"

Kurt stood up, switched off the TV, and grabbed Uni off the shelf. Blaine, half asleep, rolled on to his side before standing up and following Kurt out of the room.

"Where are we going Kurtie?" He asked.

"I don't know," Kurt was scared. His daddy had never sounded so worried and sad before. The two clamored down the stairs where Burt was waiting for them and handed them their lace up sneakers. Kurt sat down and tied his shoes carefully while Blaine watched him.

"Um, Kurtie?" Blaine shuffled a little, embarrassed. "Can you tie my shoes for me? I don't know how."

"Yeah, okay. You have to stand here though." He pointed to the floor in front of him. Burt was pacing around having returned from helping Elizabeth into the car. He hadn't noticed that the two boys were struggling to get their shoes on. Kurt finished tying Blaine's laces and they stood up. Burt shooed them into the car and buckled them up. As he walked to the driver's seat, he dialed Blaine's father.

"Hello, may I speak to Charles Anderson?" Burt waited on the line while he turned the corner. "Hello Mr. Anderson, this is Burt Hummel. I'm driving to the hospital right now and I have Blaine with me. Would you like to pick him up?" Burt was silent as he listened to Charles' reply. "I see, well he can stay with us but I don't know how long we'll be there." He then hung up without saying goodbye.

Elizabeth was particularly quiet while the boys chatted softly in the back. She was shaking and felt weaker than she had been before. Her face was grey and, for the first time, it showed hints of grief. She watched Blaine and Kurt interact in the back seat, aware that this time may be the last. Kurt was petting his unicorn's head while Blaine twisted the tail around his finger. In her head, Elizabeth imagined the boys much older, sitting side by side with their heads pressed together, speaking low enough so that only the other could hear. She smiled to herself and placed her hand on top of Burt's. She sighed peacefully as the car pulled into the hospital.

The next few hours were a blur. Elizabeth was taken to a room and a number of nurses rushed around her. Kurt and Blaine sat together, both very confused as to what was going on. Burt sat on a chair next to his wife, a steady stream of tears falling down his face.

Elizabeth locked eyes with her husband. "Burt, honey, I love you so much," she whispered, her voice full of emotion. Burt nodded in response, unable to bring himself to say anything. Elizabeth glanced at Kurt. "Promise me you'll be there for him. Every day, every hour, every minute of his life."

Burt looked at her, "I promise you, I will do everything to make him feel as loved as you did." His bottom lip quivered. Unable to say more, he grabbed her hand and brought it to his forehead.

"Kurt, Blaine?" Elizabeth called out meekly. She could feel her body slowly shutting down on her. There wasn't much time left. She wanted to so badly to be there for Kurt. To see him grow up, go to his first dance, graduate high school and college. More than anything she wanted to be there to see him get married to the perfect man. She knew, of course, and to her it didn't matter.

Kurt came over, his hand clutching Blaine's. He looked up at his mommy. He was aware something was terribly wrong, but he didn't know what. Shifting a little, she leaned over to kiss Kurt on the forehead.

"Kurt sweetie, I love you so much." She paused, the words catching in her throat. "I-I'm not going to be here for very much longer." Tears began forming in the corners of her eyes. Kurt, seeing her cry, broke down too. He didn't know where his mommy was going, but he didn't want her to leave. He let go of Blaine's hand and rushed to her.

She began to stroke his hair, "Kurt, I want you to be everything you are. Please don't let someone else decide for you what is right and what is wrong. Do what you know in your heart is right, okay? Promise me?" Kurt nodded yes. He didn't know what he was agreeing to, but he would remember her words forever. They sat together for a long time, mother and son.

Blaine, meanwhile, had been holding on to Burt's sleeve. He was crying too. He loved Elizabeth just as much as Kurt. She was more of a mom to him than his mom ever had been, or ever would be. She reached out a hand and gestured for him to come closer. She pulled him into a hug. "My two boys," she murmured.

Minutes passed. Whispering in his ear, she spoke so Kurt wouldn't hear. "Blaine you need to promise me something too. Take care of Kurt for me please, for as long as he will let you."

"Okay," he said in his smallest voice. He told himself that he would always protect Kurt from any monster that tried to hurt him.

Elizabeth took her last breath that night. The three boys who meant the most to her in the world slept on cots around the room. Burt was by her side, deep in an uneasy sleep. Kurt and Blaine were snuggled close, Uni pressed in between the two of them. Before she finally let herself slip away, she allowed herself to be truly happy for a moment. All three of them would find love again, and she was positive that two of them would discover it in each other.