When Kurt woke up, Steve was already gone and he smiled to himself until he realized that he wasn’t in his own bed. At some point while in the car, he remembered, Steve had offered up his place seeing as it was closer and Kurt had agreed at once because he knew he wasn’t going to live down his family seeing yet another guy leaving his room, or at least, he wasn’t going to live down Amie’s teasing about it if she actually saw him.

He got out of the bed slowly, glad to find that he was wearing his boxers at least and wasn’t completely in the nude. His clothes, however, were nowhere to be found and for a moment he panicked. Those were expensive, the jacket one of a kind too. A robe was hanging from a door and he grabbed it, wrapping it around his body as he left the room in search of his clothes.

“Steve?” he called out.

There was no response.

The apartment was not that small, but Kurt and Blaine had shared a bigger place when they were in college and their shared dorm room at Dalton had been about half the size of the apartment.

Kurt found his jacket a few minutes later, draped over a chair and Kurt remembered leaving it there while specifying that nothing better happen to it. The rest of his clothes were harder to find, but he remembered taking them off in the bedroom proper.

He was distracted by the smell of coffee and walked to the kitchen where a fresh brewed pot sat next to an empty cup, spoon, and sugar. He poured himself a cup and got out a carton of milk from the fridge, added a couple of spoonfuls of sugar and returned to his search for his clothes in the bedroom.

When he finally found them, it was only because he heard his phone ringing, the phone he had left in the pocket of his skinny jeans.

“Hello?” he answered without looking at the caller ID.

“It’s almost noon and you’re still not home, I was getting a little worried here.”

Kurt sighed. “Oh, it’s you. I’m okay. I’ll be back in twenty minutes, fifteen if I get off the phone now.”

She grumbled something, but then said simply, “I want all the details,” and hung up.

Kurt got back into his wrinkled clothes and quickly made a call to Clark who didn’t answer until the fourth ring.

“Yes, Mr. Kurt?”

“Can you pick me up Clark. Where you dropped me off last night, thank you, and could you hurry.” He wanted to be out of there before Steve returned.

They hadn’t talked about the things Steve wanted the night before because Kurt had practically dragged him into the bedroom the moment they got there, and then he’d offered a good enough distraction. And now after a night that had been admittedly fun, Kurt was more than ready to just get past Steve and not have to worry about any attachments being formed.

“Sure thing, Mr. Kurt, would it matter that I have a passenger at the moment?”

Kurt didn’t care as long as he got out of there as soon as possible. “No, whatever…just get me, please.”

He got off the phone and put on his shoes. His light jacket, a gift from Oscar de la Renta himself, specially made for Kurt, he draped over one arm carefully, and after making sure his hair didn’t look like too much of a mess he left the apartment and walked to the stairs they had taken the night before because the elevator, as Steve had put it, was “going to be eternally broken”.

Clark was outside just two minutes after he got out of the apartment building, and someone from the inside opened the door for him. Kurt wondered who it was and wished he had asked Clark when he was on the phone.

“Thank you,” he said regardless and hoped it wasn’t his dad or worse Rachel.

It was Blaine. It was worse than both his dad and Rachel.

“Hi,” Kurt said, “I…um…”

Blaine shrugged at him. “Morning, rather, afternoon I guess.”

Blaine sat stiffly, and looked like he wanted to say something but was holding back. It was definitely worse than his dad or Rachel. Kurt would take the disappointed “why are you doing the completely opposite of what I told you to do in our talk when you were sixteen” look his father always gave him over the mask that Blaine seemed to have put up. Even Rachel wagging her finger at him as she warned about STD’s and how she wished he would just find someone to settle down with would be better even if she was dressed in her most horrible outfit.

They were silent after that and Kurt put on his jacket in an attempt to hide the rumpled shirt, but he knew Blaine knew what he’d been up to.

“Was it…was it another one night stand or someone…someone special?” Blaine finally managed to choke out.

Kurt stared at him with wide eyes, “one night stand,” he said simply, “no one special.”

“Okay,” Blaine said and didn’t look at Kurt, “you were careful right?”

Kurt felt his cheeks warm up. “Of course,” he answered this time with a bit of bite in his voice, “I’m not stupid.”

“I know you’re not, but if you were drinking or doing who knows what else before then, I don’t know, your judgment might not have been the best.”

It was rushed out and said gruffly, but Kurt heard the undertone of caring in his words and he let out a breath before he spoke.

“I would never do drugs if that’s what you’re implying. You know that. And I don’t drink that much all the time. The other day was under Amie’s influence. I am a grown man, Blaine, I know what I’m doing.”

Blaine nodded slowly and then he ran a hand over his face. “I’m sorry. I just…it’s Rachel and her trial. I found out something about her and it’s just put me on edge a bit because I never thought she’d ever do that…and it got me thinking. I had to wonder if you…with all the partying you’ve been doing…”

“If I what? Do you really think I’ve changed all the much, Blaine, that I would go anywhere near whatever Rachel’s putting in her body? I would never, and you know that. You knew that even before you started accusing me of it.”

Blaine hung his head. “Yeah, I know, I just…I had a moment of doubt.”

Kurt nodded. “Fine. So, what is Rachel doing anyway?”

“Pot,” Blaine said with a roll of his eyes, “I don’t think she’s gone past that, but you know it’s a gateway drug and…she planted it on that girl she’s on trial against to get the part over her. Your PR person e-mailed me this morning to tell me the best thing for the family will be for Rachel to give up the part after all of this is done.”

Kurt winced. “Ow, she’s going to be horrible to live with when you tell her that.”

“I don’t want to,” Blaine said, “but it’s the only way for her to save face really. This way there’s no lasting speculation about it. Your father agrees it’s for the best. I just don’t think Finn’s going to be able to handle Rachel sober like this and he’s just started reaching out for help.”

Blaine in this worried, harried state reminded Kurt of the Blaine from college during Midterms or Finals week, running around constantly worried with a growing beard on his face and his eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep. He looked like he’d gotten some sleep, but there was still the nervous energy around him. He was jumpy.

“I am going to wish you all the luck in the world with dealing with Rachel.”

The car came to a stop and both glanced out the window.

“My stop, then,” Blaine said and smiled at Kurt, “I’m sorry for earlier…I just, I remember the boy that put his fingers in his ears and sung whenever the subject came up and to see you like this now, it’s not what I expected.”

“I know,” Kurt whispered and added in his mind, ‘you expected us to stay together, you expected that you were going to be my one and only.’

- - -

Amie spent her afternoon pestering Kurt in between trying to teach Shelby how to dance to thriller while Mike watched.

“I just don’t understand why you don’t give him a chance. I know you’re sort of hung up on Blainers, but, Honey, you have to move on sometime.”

Amie was torn. She knew deep down that Kurt and Blaine belonged together, but above all she needed to put Mia first and what Mia needed was a stable environment and for the moment that was Blaine and Nick. There was no doubt in her mind that Blaine still loved Kurt in at least some capacity, but he also loved Nick and Nick had a large part in Mia’s life and that alone meant he would always have an advantage over Kurt.

Then there was the fact that she didn’t know how Kurt would react to knowing she was Mia’s mother. Kurt liked children, adored them and he would fall for Mia in an instant, but knowing that Blaine had intended for her to be Kurt’s as much as his. No, Kurt could never find out.

“I just…I’m not relationship material. Not anymore. And I have to focus on designing now. I don’t have the time,” Kurt said and stifled his laughter when Shelby ran into her and almost sent her toppling to the ground.

“Well, I guess she takes after her father after all,” Amie said and wrapped her arms around Shelby, hoisting her up with all the strength she had, to drop her on the couch next to Kurt, giggling.

“Which speaking of,” Kurt said, “I should be working on. I had this really good idea for some winter jackets and I wanted to just get started on that.”

Amie was glad to see him excited about something again. Back when they were still in school he’d wanted to design more than anything, but he’d gotten into his mind that it wasn’t possible for him to do anything of the kind. Not with his last name and slowly he’d given it up. The break up with Blaine had definitely not helped. There was too much in the way of bad timing between them.

“Have fun,” she said.

“I intend to.” He already looked like he was planning something in his mind.

“Come on, you rugrats, I promised ice cream earlier and I think now is the perfect time to go get some.”

They shouted their agreement and she picked up Mike before he could run off, letting Shelby lead them towards the kitchen.

There was a soft serve ice cream machine in the kitchen which had been put in back when she and Kurt were still in high school as a gift for Finn, and it was still working as well as ever. Shelby and Mike still didn’t know how to use it and they weren’t allowed to have ice cream all the time anyway.

“Can you get the cones out, Shelbs?”

The girl nodded and rushed to the cabinet that had a few boxes of ice cream cones, bringing out the waffle cones out because those were her favorites.

She had just started the machine and was filling up the first cone, when the elevator chimed in signal of the doors opening. Amie was surprised for a moment that the noise could be heard all the way in the kitchen, but seeing as the maid spent most of her time there it did make some sense that she’d be able to hear it.

“Can you go see who that is please, Shelby?”

She nodded and ran off and then Amie heard her shout, “It’s Mr. Blaine!”

Amie smiled a little. “We’re in the kitchen, Blaine!”

She heard Blaine’s footsteps and then Shelby appeared, pulling at Blaine’s hand and talking a mile a minute about her earlier dance lessons.

“I forgot she was Finn’s daughter,” Amie added and upon Blaine’s look of confusion added, “she can’t dance.”

The first ice cream was done and she handed it to Shelby because Mike was going to make a mess unless he was supervised.

“Would you like an ice cream?”

Blaine seemed to just then notice what she’d been doing and he began to grin. “Wow, that old thing’s still around. Sure. You know, your uncle Kurt and I used to make your dad ice cream all the time because he could never get it just right,” he told Shelby.

“Really? Uncle Kurt makes the best ice cream ever!” after a moment she added, “yours isn’t bad, Aunt Amie.”

Amie laughed. She really did love Shelby. She was the perfect mixture of Finn and Rachel, mixing a lack of dance skills and an opinionated perspective to life with bluntness that she thought could have come from Kurt’s influence.

“So what are you doing here, anyway? Burt’s at the office.”

“I was looking for you, actually,” Blaine said as if he just remembered that. “So, Nick is going to his family thing, he’s leaving early tomorrow and I get Mia all to myself for a few days. Anyway, I just thought it might be the perfect time if you wanted to meet her since he’ll be gone and I wanted to run that by you.”

Amie stopped and only managed to stop the machine because of Shelby poking her on the leg. She handed the cone to Blaine and went about making two more.

“So…”

“Yes. Of course I’m interested. I can’t believe you want me to meet her…to actually…I just never thought I’d get to…”

Since seeing Mia’s picture Amie had become almost fascinated by wanting to meet the girl that was technically her daughter, but she hadn’t voiced those thoughts to Blaine, not wanting to overstep, but he’d obviously known she wanted to meet Mia.

“Alright. Cool. We’ll figure something out then,” Blaine said.

While she was turned away he’d picked up Mike and was helping him eat the ice cream he’d been handed. Amie watched, holding the new cone, he was such a natural.

- - -

Blaine ran straight into Kurt on his way out, mostly because he was focused on his phone and Kurt was wrapped up in a bunch of fabric and holding a bunch of paper, and they both to the floor in a tangled mess with all of Kurt’s things thrown around the hall.

“Damn it,” Kurt muttered and tried to get up, but when he looked at his leg he realized that it was wrapped up in silver fabric that was tangled around Blaine’s body and left arm.

Blaine lay still on the floor, and tried not to laugh at the situation, but he couldn’t help the grin.

“Not funny,” Kurt muttered and tried to punch his arm, but realized he also couldn’t really move his arm due to the red fabric that he was seated on.

“Be glad,” Kurt added, “that I didn’t have needles with me too.”

“Are you making something?” Blaine asked conversationally and tried to untangle his arm first.

“Sort of. Cleaning for now, I haven’t looked at this stuff in ages and the room is a mess, but these were the salvageable ones…or were.”

Blaine did laugh, then, just as he managed to free his arm. He had to literally roll off the fabric he’d been laying on to get it off of him. Kurt made work of his leg and managed to stand up, unwrapping other bits of fabric off of him while Blaine took off his left shoe to finally get up.

“Okay, now there’s just to pick everything up,” he said and then added, “I hope this doesn’t put you off starting things up again.”

Kurt shook his head. “Nah, I’ve put it aside for so long it’s about time I get back into it.”

Blaine helped him get all the fabric rolled up and back to how it had been before, in the process finding his phone. He also helped gather the sheets of paper that had gone everywhere despite Kurt’s argument that there was no need.

The designs were old and Blaine recognized maybe three of them, but the others he’d never seen. Kurt had only ever shared the ones he thought were particularly brilliant, but for the most part he’d kept them to himself unless he really needed an opinion about something.

“There are amazing,” he said, “I can’t believe you never pursued it.”

Kurt shrugged. “I always thought I’d end up having to take over the company and be in charge of all the Hummel businesses and I didn’t want to start something that in the end I’d have to give up.”

There was logic to his answer, but Blaine had never considered that Kurt had been fearing his future for so long.

“But my dad said, he told me he had someone else in mind to take over if they say yes…and I could hire someone too and I just, I never thought of the other options. I convinced myself that it would disappoint my dad to not want to follow his footsteps, how stupid is that?”

Kurt didn’t glance at Blaine as he spoke, and although his excuse could have been the paper he was holding with a half finished design, but Blaine knew him better than that and knew that he didn’t want to look at Blaine for some reason. He wondered for how long Kurt had been feeling this way and seeing his future trapped. Had it started before they broke up?

“Not stupid,” he said, “you just didn’t want to face the day when you’d have to actually give everything you loved up.”

Kurt had gathered all of his designs and was making sure they were all facing the right way. “You don’t know how excited I am to get started. I’ve never had so many ideas ready to be drawn and maybe even made.”

Blaine couldn’t help but smile broadly at Kurt. This was the Kurt he remembered, easily excitable by life and so, so passionate about anything he truly loved. It was bittersweet to see him like this when he couldn’t technically be there to share in his eventual success.

Kurt’s phone rang and Kurt reached for it at once, frowning at the screen as if he didn’t want to answer.

Blaine’s curiosity got the better of him, “who is it?”

Kurt answered the call and didn’t even start with a hello, instead he asked, “how do you have my number and what do you want?”

Kurt looked shocked, though scandalized might be the better word to describe him, and then he glanced at Blaine, before he spoke again, “We did not go on a freaking date, Steven. I thought I made it clear it was nothing more than a one time thing.” Then he hung up, and blushed.

Steve had to have been the one-night stand, Blaine decided, and a clingy one at that.

“I didn’t think he’d…no one’s ever tried to…”

“You don’t have to explain,” Blaine said and shifted from foot to foot awkwardly.

This was Kurt. Kurt who went to parties or out to bars and picked up guys with agreements on the meaning of their later romp in the sheets; he wasn’t the boy Blaine had known. No matter the small glimpses he’d seen, Kurt was someone else entirely now and he, Blaine was someone different too.

“Well, I should get going,” Blaine said, “I’ll see you later or tomorrow.”

“Yeah, okay.”

“Good luck with everything,” Blaine added and then pulled his phone back out, calling back as an afterthought, “if you do need a number change please don’t tell me it’s my job to get you one.”

He heard Kurt laugh. “I am capable of calling a phone company, Blaine.”

- - -

Nick had to unpack his bag twice because he’d accidentally begun packing for him, Blaine, and Mia. But eventually he got it right and he found that there was even room to spare for an extra outfit.

Mia played with blocks, building some sort of tower on the floor of his and Blaine’s room as he got everything together. He loved how she could get so caught up with something, that the world around her just disappeared. At times during his packing, he couldn’t help but pause to just look at her. Mia was beautiful and there was so much of Blaine in her.

He heard the door to the apartment open and he grinned. Blaine was home early again.

“In the bedroom,” he shouted.

Blaine appeared a few moments later although without shoes and a loose tie.

“Are you done packing yet?” Blaine asked and dropped onto their bed after moving a few of Nick’s things out of the way.

“Yeah, I think, just a few last minute things, but I’ll be okay with what I have for the weekend.”

“Good,” Blaine said, “because I am taking the two of you out to dinner, and barring any actual crisis happening with Rachel or Finn, we should be Hummel free.”

Nick didn’t know how to react, because this was just exactly what he’d needed. So, he jumped over Mia’s tower and went to Blaine, pulling his fianc� up from the bed and into a kiss.

Blaine hummed, when he pulled away, “and that is the kind of reaction that I want for everything.” He raised his hands to grab Nick’s face and kissed him again.

“Anyway, go get ready. I just need a quick change of clothes and I will deal with the little miss.”

Mia looked up. “Yes, daddy?”

“We’re going to dress you up, Sweetheart, we’re going out to eat, and don’t you want to look pretty?”

She nodded seriously and then, leaving her blocks behind ran off towards her room with Blaine trailing after her.

Nick couldn’t help but be filled with love, watching them. He went to take a quick shower and then picked out clothes to change into, casual, comfortable clothing and blow dried his hair. He was done before Blaine had finished dressing and he rolled his eyes at the bow tie he sported.

“What?” Blaine asked, “I never get the chance to wear these anymore.”

Then, they were off. They went to a small family owned restaurant that they’d stumbled upon a few years back. It was perfect for them, kid friendly and with great food. They were walked to a table the moment they walked in and Blaine sat down next to Mia in the booth, while Nick sat across from them.

“I’m going to miss both of you, even if it is for a few days,” Nick said, “I wish you could come with me.”

Blaine smiled at him, a reassuring smile more than anything, and turned his eyes back to the menu and Nick knew that there would be no talking about it. Mia in the meanwhile occupied herself with the bucket of crayons the waitress that handed them their menus had given her on the activities sheet she’d also placed in front of her.

“What are you going to get?” Blaine asked, “I was thinking of maybe going for the steak, but what do you think?”

Nick hadn’t even looked at the menu. “I don’t know yet,” he said and dropped his eyes to the words on the plastic page before him.

He’d been excited for dinner, for it to go back to how things had been once, but they weren’t the same. Blaine didn’t talk about his day like he used to. He didn’t mention his latest case enthusiastically or whatever charity he was trying to help out for free. The topic of his job with the Hummels seemed like something he didn’t want to discuss or was afraid to bring up.

Instead they talked about Mia and about the restaurant, and at one point even about how the waitresses didn’t seem to have matching shirts anymore.

“They did, don’t you remember, back in the day?” Blaine asked.

Nick nodded.

For the most part, Blaine focused on Mia; Talking to her about her coloring, even going as far as to start coloring with her. Nick loved watching him like this, seeing him with Mia and acting so fatherly. Since he’d started work with the Hummels it hadn’t been happening as often and he knew Mia missed him. He decided it was a good thing he was going away for a few days. Maybe the time apart would make things better for them.

When they headed back home, Blaine had to take a call, but luckily it didn’t turn into more than just the call and he didn’t have to rush off to someone’s rescue.

“Just have to make a few calls when we get home,” he told Nick.

Nick finished packing while Blaine made his calls and then set up a movie for them, by the time all the previews had finished playing, Blaine was done.

“Sorry, but I had to field a reporter for the family.”

“A reporter?” Nick asked.

“Well, more like paparazzi really. Buying a picture off of them, not really sure what of. What are we watching?”

The rest of the night was what their Thursdays back before Blaine’s father died, were. The three of them cuddled up together watching a movie that would put Mia to sleep about halfway through and end with Nick and Blaine in the bedroom. Except that this time, Blaine was far more interested in the movie than in watching Mia to see if she’d fall asleep, and once she did, instead of taking her to her room, he rested her more comfortably in his arms, eyes not moving from the tv.

Nick sighed, looking at both. “I think I’ll go to bed. I’m leaving early tomorrow.”

Blaine barely reacted.