"Be careful, Finn!  It's slippery!” Rachel barrelled ahead of them, shouting at people to get out of the way and guiding them forward like a crazed, miniskirted traffic cop.   Kurt was so dazed with pain and nerves that he barely registered the stares and murmurs from the crowd as Finn shouldered through, but he felt each and every step Finn took in every bruised muscle in his tortured body.

Finn slipped as he stepped up on an icy curb, catching himself in time, but Kurt cried out in agony at the accidental jolt to his ribs.

“I'm sorry, bro - -”

“Please, it's ok, just please - - hurry - -” Kurt panted.  

“I see the hospital up ahead.  You'll be taken care of soon,” Finn assured him.

Everything sped up once they got inside the hospital.  Finn put him down on some kind of bed or gurney, and then he was being pushed at full speed along the hall.  He curled up on his side, holding on to the rails on the hospital bed, as the ceiling lights flashed  past overhead.  He shut his eyes to try to stop the world's spinning.  

This was it.  It was real, this pain was too intense to be a dream.  Part of him still hadn't quite believed this would really happen, but the moment had arrived after all.  His baby was coming, ready or not.   

The bed rolled to a stop, and a strangers hands unbuttoned his shirt, stripping it from him before other hands applied blue gel and a doppler wand. He cried with relief at the whooshing sound. Penny. Pennys heart.

"Kurt!"

He opened his eyes and then smiled despite the pain and through his tears. It was Blaine.  He was here, lying on the stretcher beside his in the hallway.

They reached through the rails at the same time and clasped hands off the edges of their beds.

"Thank God Finn and Rachel found you! I was scared to death."

"Im in labor," Kurt gasped. "Are -- are you--"

"Me too.  Im about to go in for my c-section."

Kurt started to answer him, but then another contraction crashed over him, the world going blurry around him until the pain passed.  When it did, Blaine was tenderly stroking his face.  Someone had pushed their stretchers together, and Blaine somehow leaned over the rail of his bed, looking down at him with fear and worry etched across his sweet face.  

“That was a bad one, wasn't it?” Blaine said, pityingly.  “They gave me something for mine, but it was really bad before.  I'm so sorry you had to go through it with no help, all alone - - you must have been so scared.”

“I was … but it's okay now that I'm with you.”  He pressed Blaine's hand to his lips and gazed into his eyes, focusing on him through the next contraction.  It was easier to bear now. A little, anyway ... and then Dr. Shelley was there.

“Okay boys … Blaine is stable, and his pain is controlled.  We're going to take you in first, Kurt.”

“Wait, what?  I - I'm not ready.  I haven't had any pain medication - - Blaine's ready - -”

“We'll give you general anesthesia when we get you inside.  There's some internal bleeding, some cracked ribs … I don't want to wait.  We're doing a crash section on you.”

“Bleeding?  But the baby - is my baby all right?  Doctor!” Kurt cried.  Blaine squeezed his hand again, and kissed his damp forehead.

“Kurt.  Let the doctors take care of you, honey.  I'll see you in a little bit.  It'll be all right, I promise.”

Kurt nodded, and stretched up to return the kiss.  “I love you so much.”

“I love you too.  I can't wait to see you and meet our babies.  Really soon, okay?  Don't be scared.”

A nurse shoved a clipboard in his face and he scrawled his name at the bottom, and then was wheeled away from his husband.  He managed a tiny wave goodbye as the doors swung shut, before remembering.  

He'd promised never to say goodbye.  

He hoped Blaine understood … it was going to be ‘see you later.'  Not goodbye.  Never goodbye.

Kurt felt a calm settle over him as they positioned the bed in the operating room.  It was different from what he expected.  Smaller, and so brightly lit, he noticed as the staff transferred him to another table, and began to wash his stretched belly with a red soapy liquid, and put up white cotton drapes around him.  There were a lot of people swarming like worker ants around their swollen, pregnant queen ant. Someone started an IV and positioned his arms out to his sides, strapping them down ... As if he was being nailed to a cross.

“Hey, kiddo.”  Kurt turned toward the familiar voice.  He focused his eyes with some difficulty, and realized thegowned and masked "doctor” near his bed had his father's eyes and voice.

“Dad … you're here …”

“I know Blaine wishes he could be here for this, but he's on deck next, so your old man'll have to pinch hit for him.  You put me down as bein' allowed in during the surgery. But if you changed your mind and don't want me in here keepin' an eye on stuff, that's fine - just say the word and I'll make myself scarce.”

"Oh no, Dad! No, I want you here … I want someone who loves me here, to see my baby born. Please stay.”

“Kurt, before this starts … I wanna say how proud I am of you.  You're being a lot braver than I'd be in your place.”

“Thanks, Dad.  Love you.”

“Love you too, Kiddo.”

The anesthesiologist loomed into view from behind and above his head.  “I'm going to put a mask on your face now, Kurt.  Then I want you to count backwards from 100 and breathe deeply, okay?”

Kurt's voice was a hoarse whisper as he said yes, and then the mask was placed.

100.  99.  98.  97.  96.  95.  94 … and blackness swept over him.

~ * ~ * ~ *  ~ *  ~ * ~

His throat felt so sore, so dry.  He didn't know where he was or why it was so hard to open his eyes.  So hard, but he … he could hear a voice.  It sounded so far away, but … it was Blaine.  Blaine was singing.  He wanted to wake up and really listen to that singing … he wanted to see Blaine.  He managed to get his eyes to half-mast.

It was dim in the room … shadowy.  There was Blaine's voice again.  It sounded like Blaine's hugs felt.  So soft and warm, strong and soothing.  He loved that.  And that well-loved voice went so well with his own flute-like one, Blaine's smooth, mellow tone beneath his… they went so well together.  He knew the melody, but he couldn't figure out the words or turn his head just yet.  He just drifted peacefully on that lullaby for a long time.  Then ... it drifted into  Blaine talking, his words a lullaby of their own.

“That's my girl.  You're doing a great job, little one.  I love you.”

Sleep was trying to take him away again, pulling him under like a riptide at the ocean, but he swam against it.  His Blaine was here … their babies … he had to see.  He managed to roll his face toward them, and his heart stopped.

Blaine was in a hospital bed. That was right, this was the hospital, and ... he was in a hospital bed too, just a few feet away. His heart leapt when he saw the babies' two bassinets between them.  There was a baby in one of them, swaddled tightly and with her tiny face turned away in sleep.  But the other … the other was empty.

Kurt panicked for a moment. Then, he realized ... Blaine was holding a tiny baby in his arms, leaning over and feeding her from a bottle.  The lucky girl was gazing up at her daddy, and they had eyes only for each other.  He tried to call out to Blaine, but he was too weak, too tired, his mouth and throat too sore.  He just watched as Blaine set the small, pink bottle on the bedside table with one hand and raised the baby to his shoulder, rubbing her back.  A healthy burp came from the little body, and Blaine laughed and settled her in the crook of his arm.

“That was a good one.  You are such a good girl, Penny.”  Blaine turned and saw Kurt looking, and burst into a wide smile.

“Kurt! How are you feeling?  You've been asleep for hours!"

Kurt smiled feebly.  “Babies … they're okay?  And you?” he whispered.

“They're perfect, and I'm doing just fine.”

“Can I see? Please?”

“Of course!  You can raise the head of your bed, on that TV remote thing.   I'll bring the girls over to see you.  Don't try to get up before the nurses come.  You cracked your ribs when you fell and need to stay still. Let me get the call button - -”

“No.  Don't call them yet.”  Kurt fumbled for the remote, pushing the button and slowly rising up with the bed to a sitting position.  The horrible pain was gone now, replaced with a dull ache.  He pressed down on his now-flatter, softer belly and winced.

“Are you sure you're okay?  Shouldnt I call the nurse?” Blaine asked anxiously. He had laid the baby in the same clear plastic-sided bassinet as her sister and was slowly inching off the edge of his bed.

“It just hurts when I press down on it,” Kurt said ruefully.  “You know the old gag.  Doctor, it hurts when I lift my arm?”

“Then don't lift your arm, right?” Blaine smiled.  “Take my advice and go slow with everything for now.  I'm allowed out of bed but you should wait until they check you out.   In fact, I really should call - -“

“No!  I said I want to see our babies first!”

Blaine was up on his feet now, slightly hunched over but rolling the baby's bassinet over alongside Kurt's bed.  “Okay, geeze. So bossy.”  He picked up one of the babies and turned with her.  Kurt reached out and Blaine laid a warm little bundle in his arms.   “Meet Penny.”

Kurt looked down into a serious little face, wide awake and unblinking.  With big, round blue eyes, and what he was sure were the most perfect features any baby ever had.  His trembling fingers tugged at the pink crocheted cap on her head, and revealed a shock of straight, nearly black hair. “She's perfect,” he breathed.  

Blaine laid a second baby in the crook of Kurt's other arm.  “And here's Ari.  Almost identical, just a couple ounces heavier, but the same length … same hair, same everything.”

“I wish they were a little less alike, to be honest.  How will we tell them apart?  What if you mixed them up already?” Kurt fretted, pressing a kiss to Ari's head and then Penny's.

“They have hospital ID bracelets on, silly.  And I took extra precautions.  Don't you see Penny is wearing pink accessories?”

“I did notice that, actually.  I have to say, that's a lot more gender conforming than I expected from you.  And after I went out of my way to decorate their room in our dorm suite in tasteful gender-neutral primary colors,”  Kurt tsk'ed, giving Blaine a sly, sleepy grin.  

“Yes, but it's not pink because it's a girl color.  It's because of her name.  You know.  P for pink and P for Penny.”

Kurt looked at the crocheted booties and hat, and a tiny crocheted ID bracelet around Penny's ankle.  “Okay … but … why is Ari in green, then?”

“Apple green, Kurt!  I'm surprised at you!  A is for Apple and for Ari!”

“So cute … but where'd all these crocheted things come from?  They look handmade.  Nobody we know can crochet, can they?  Did your mom make them?”

Blaine looked sheepish.  “I made them.  I taught myself to crochet while I was on bed rest and made a bunch of stuff for them.”  He opened a drawer on the night table and revealed dozens of small hats, booties, ankle and wrist ID bracelets, all in pink and apple green.  “I didn't say anything because I wanted it to be a surprise.  And this.”  He pulled out two bottles of nail polish, one pink and one apple green.  “I painted their toenails already.”

Kurt laughed, slipping off a green bootie and counting Ari's wee toes. Sure enough, they had a tiny dot of green nail polish on each minute nail.   He kissed Blaine on the cheek, chuckling.  “You're insane and that is repulsive looking.  But itll help tell them apart until we figure out how to do it without the cheat.  Great idea, Papa.  They look adorable.”  

“Thank you, Daddy.  I guess Papa has some good ideas.”   Blaine yawned widely.

“You look tired, honey.  Why don't you shut your eyes for a while?  I've got the girls.”

Blaine squinted at Kurt.  “Really?”  

“What?”

“Nothing.  You just … well, it's a good thing, actually.  You just don't seem as overwhelmed by fatherhood as I was expecting.  I was pretty freaked out for the first two hours looking at the two of them, and I accepted it all pretty much the first day we found out about them.  You were the one who had a hard time believing in all this at first, now … I'm the one who's completely blown away … and you're completely chill?”

The babies' eyes were at half-mast after their feeding, a little sliver of blue showing between long-lashed lids,  and they were so peaceful in Kurt's arms.  They fit there perfectly.  Like they were made for just that, to sleep cozily in his embrace.  Kurt shrugged.  “I can't explain it … but it feels like i've known them both forever somehow.  It feels right, not weird at all.  I can't believe I was ever afraid of being their daddy.”   He nuzzled Ari's velvety cheek and smiled as she turned toward his touch.  “We're best friends already, aren't we, little ones?”  

The fathers chuckled together at the little mew Ari let out as if in response.

“I'm … just so happy.  So in love with all three of you.  I want to live in this moment forever,” Kurt admitted.  Blaine's eyes welled up, and he leaned in to kiss him tenderly.  After a few soft kisses, Kurt turned his face away, chuckling.  “Oh no you don't.  Don't start something we can't finish.  Besides, you clearly need to sleep a little.  You look exhausted. Cmon, lie down with us and cuddle.”

Blaine looked grateful, and squeezed into the bed beside him with a snuggle.  It was only a minute before he dropped off.   Kurt smiled down at the three loves of his life in his arms.  His miracle family.  

He glanced out the window at the skyline and whispered, "thank you, Ariadne."