Kurt Hummel loved being a father. He had known he would since he was three years old and pretended his blue Power Ranger was his child. His mother had eventually bought him a baby doll, and when Burt had arched an eyebrow at her, all the explanation she had given was: “What? You don't want your little boy to learn how to be a good father?”

This was the memory that came back to him as he crossed the threshold of his home with his baby in his arms. Penelope had fallen asleep during the cab ride, but she was starting to stir now, and Kurt smiled down at her brightly, still trying very hard to believe that she was his daughter, that this was really happening.

“Hey there, Sleeping Beauty,” he cooed. “Welcome home. Are you ready to get a tour?”

She barely made a gurgling noise, but she didn't seem upset or ready to start wailing, so Kurt dropped the diaper bag on the nearest chair and stepped into the living room, showing her around.

“These are your grandparents,” he said, as they stopped in front of a family portrait. “And your Uncle Finn and Aunt Marley. They will come meet you very soon, with your little cousins, and they are going to love you.”

Another adorable little sound came out of her, and though Kurt had no idea what it meant, it made his heart melt. He went into the kitchen.

“And this is where Daddy is going to make all your yummy meals,” he continued. “Which reminds me that we're going to have to hit the supermarket soon or we'll run out of formula. Yes, we will!”

He showed her his bedroom and his closet – “the shirts on the left are Daddy's favorite ones, so try not to puke on those, okay, darling?” – before moving onto her own bedroom.

“And this is all yours! Do you like it? Daddy wanted your room to be very, very special,” he muttered, kissing her forehead. “Just like you. You're my special little girl.”

Penelope seemed to be done with the tour, because her lower lip began trembling, and then she was letting out a very loud cry that made Kurt startle a little.

“Oh, it's okay, honey. We're done now. Do you want your bottle?” He walked back to the diaper bag to retrieve her new bottle and the formula. He got anxious for a moment, not sure if he would be able to make her bottle and hold onto her at the same time, but he took a deep breath and gave it a shot. He still hadn't pulled the stroller out of the box, and he didn't want to leave her alone in her crib when she was crying.

Once he was done, he went into the living room and got comfortable on the couch, making sure he was holding her the way the nurse had taught him before he put the silicone nipple in her mouth. She made the cutest little noises while eating, and Kurt watched her, enamored, until she finished. Then he cradled her against his chest and sang her to sleep.

He pretended not to notice the heavy silence that invaded the apartment as Penny slept.

*

A few days later, Kurt had just put Penelope down in her crib for a nap when his phone rang. He smiled brightly at the caller ID.

“Hey Dad!” He exclaimed, heading into the living room to fold some laundry – who knew such a tiny little thing as Penny would end up causing him to have twice as much laundry to take care of than he used to? “Are you about to board the plane?”

Burt sighed on the other end, which was a bad sign all together. “Listen, kiddo…”

“Oh, oh,” Kurt frowned. “I don't like that tone. What's going on?”

“Flights are getting cancelled due to the weather,” Burt replied grumpily. “They don't know when they'll reschedule it, but it looks like it'll be after Christmas.”

“What?” Kurt dropped the shirt he had in his hands. “But it's Penny's first Christmas! It's Christmas Eve tomorrow! I can't believe this!”

“Trust me, Kurt, I'm way more upset about this than you are,” Burt said. “I wanted to see my granddaughter. It's been almost a week since she was born and I still haven't hold her.”

Kurt made a comforting sound. “It's okay, Dad. You'll get to monopolize her as soon as you get there. I guess we can celebrate Christmas on the 26th?”

Burt groaned, and when his father sounded like a caveman, it only meant his mood was going downhill. “We could go back to the house and get the truck. I'm sure we could drive to New York just fine…”

“Don't you even think about it,” Kurt said firmly. “We'll still be here on the 26th. Just stay home, get warm, and let's wait it out. I'm sure everything will be better soon.”

“I don't want you two to spend Christmas on your own. It's Penelope's first holiday,” Burt protested.

“Well, there's nothing we can do about it, Dad. At least she's too young to notice. It would be harder if you had to delay Christmas with Finn's boys. They would riot,” Kurt answered. “Don't worry about us.”

“Fine,” his father finally accepted. “Carole sends her love. We'll call again when we get back to the house.”

“Alright. Take care,” Kurt said.

Once they had hung up, Kurt deflated and leaned back against the couch. He hadn't wanted to sound too disappointed as not to make things worse for his dad, but the truth was that he had been really looking forward to this. He wanted his family to meet his daughter, and even if Penelope had no idea what Christmas was, he wanted to make the memory of her first holiday as perfect as possible. Rachel and Will had already left to spend some time with Will's family in Washington, and Santana and Dani had booked a vacation in Cabo San Lucas months ago. He had other friends in the city, but no one he truly wanted to share this day with.

With the wonderful craziness Penelope had brought into his life, he hadn't even found time to put the Christmas tree together. He sighed and glanced at the boxes of ornaments piled up in the corner next to the naked tree.

He wasn't in such a holiday spirit after all. He was more in the mood for a nap.

*

Since Kurt had brought Penelope home from the hospital, life had felt a lot like a dream. Even if he hadn't been sleeping much and his favorite Armani shirt had ended up in the trash, he loved every second he spent with her, and couldn't get enough of holding her in his arms and watching her perfect face.

But on Christmas Eve, Kurt wondered if he had made a mistake adopting a baby.

It wasn't that he was having second thoughts. He absolutely loved her, and would never change her for anything. It was just that it had been hours and, for some reason, Penny would not stop crying. He had tried feeding her, changing her diaper, rocking her to sleep, singing, distracting her with a teddy bear, and nothing had worked. She just kept crying and crying and crying in anguish, so Kurt began to despair.

“I'm sorry,” he said, feeling like he was near tears. “I'm sorry, sweetheart. I don't know what you want.”

Penelope's only answer was to wail a little louder.

“Oh my god, why am I putting an innocent baby through this? Why did I think I would be a good father? I am clearly inadequate,” Kurt mumbled miserably, as he paced the living room with the baby, without a single idea of what to do to calm her.

What if she was sick? How was he supposed to know?

He went into the bathroom and grabbed the thermometer. He placed it gently in her ear and waited for a moment, until the reading was complete. But she didn't have a fever, and Kurt was honestly running out of ideas.

Next, he called Carole.

“Oh honey, don't worry. If you've fed her and changed her, then it's probably nothing. Maybe she has gas or she needs to burp. If she doesn't have a temperature, then just give her time,” she said soothingly, and Kurt wished he could just send her the baby through the phone, because he was sure as hell that Carole would handle her a million times better than he ever could.

“I can't do this, Carole. I don't know what she needs,” Kurt said, frustrated.

“Yes, you can. Babies cry all the time, Kurt,” she replied calmly. “As long as you're taking care of her, then everything will be fine.”

It took forever before she calmed down, but the one thing that seemed to do the trick were the lights in the Christmas tree. She stared at them and quieted almost immediately, and Kurt bowed to never take the Christmas tree down ever again. It would remain in his living room until she was old enough to go to college.

By the time she fell asleep at last, Kurt was exhausted. He took her to her bedroom and put her in the crib, watching her for a moment and making sure the floorboards didn't crack under his shoes, afraid even the smallest sound would wake her again. Then he went into the living room, collapsed on the couch, and forced himself not to cry.

It just had been a bad day. He was bound to have many of those. His family hadn't made it to New York for Christmas, his baby had been a crying machine, and he hadn't slept in days. It was normal. Things could only get better from now on, right?

His eyes were falling closed when there was a knock on the door. Kurt jumped from the couch, startled, and promising to kill whoever was on the other side if they woke his little girl…

Every threat died in his throat as soon as he opened the door and found Blaine standing there, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot.

He was wrapped in that amazing dark blue coat that Kurt loved on him, and a very thick black scarf. There were a few snowflakes caught in his eyelashes and hair. His cheeks were slightly red from the cold, and his eyes a little wide, anxious. He was holding something in his hands, hidden behind his back, and Kurt had no idea what this was about, but his heart began to race.

“Blaine…” he whispered breathlessly. “Hi.”

“Hi, Kurt. I hope I'm not interrupting anything?” Blaine asked, glancing awkwardly behind Kurt's shoulder, as if expecting to see a party taking place inside the apartment.

“Not at all, I'm just… a little surprised, that's all,” Kurt admitted, unable to tear his eyes from Blaine. God, he was so handsome. It almost hurt to look at him, he was so perfect.

“Well, I wanted to stop by and congratulate you on the baby,” Blaine said, a little sheepishly. “And give you this.”

He extended a gift bag to Kurt, revealing what he had been hiding behind his back. Kurt was shocked to see there was a card on the bag, that said Penelope in a curvy script, with a smiley face drawn next to it.

“You… thank you, you didn't have to…” Kurt murmured, perplexed. “How did you know her name?”

“Your friends stopped by the gym the other day and told me the news,” Blaine shrugged.

“What? I'm going to kill them. Did they bother you? I didn't ask them to do that, Blaine, I swear, I…” Kurt began saying, completely appalled at his friends' lack of boundaries.

“No, no, Kurt, please,” Blaine stopped him, raising his hands between them as if to calm him. “They didn't bother me at all. It was actually very nice to see them…”

Kurt had no idea what to say, so he busied himself opening the gift bag. There was a little onesie inside, and he unfolded it to read the inscription, in black and pink letters: Of course I'm cute… just look at my Daddy.

The only explanation for what happened next was that Kurt had had a very, very long day. There was no other excuse.

He burst into tears.

Blaine's eyes widened in alarm. “Oh Kurt, I'm sorry… I… do you hate it? Is it bad taste? I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come, I…”

Blaine's next words got lost when Kurt simply launched himself into his arms, holding him so tightly that he was sure he was cutting off his circulation, but he couldn't let go, couldn't get enough of the wonderful scent of Blaine's skin, and the way their bodies seemed to fit together so easily, as if made for each other…

“Kurt…” Blaine gasped, and now he sounded concerned. “Are you okay?”

“It's beautiful,” Kurt practically sobbed. “Thank you so much.”

“I'm glad you like it, but…” his hands settled on the small of Kurt's back, warm and safe. “I wasn't expecting this kind of reaction.”

Kurt sniffed and pulled away reluctantly. “I'm sorry. I'm sleep deprived. I shouldn't have…”

“It's fine, really,” Blaine assured him softly.

“Oh god, I have you standing in the hallway like you're some sort of door to door salesman,” Kurt shook his head. “Come in, please.”

“Are you sure? I don't want to bother…”

“Blaine,” Kurt cut him off, because his politeness was cute, but Kurt was too tired to deal with it now. “I want you to. Please.”

Blaine gave him a shy little smile before following him into the apartment. Kurt suddenly realized that his place didn't look as pristine as usual – there were baby things lying around, and even a few dirty dishes that he hadn't found the energy to wash. And then he remembered there was something that looked even worse than his apartment: himself.

His hair was sticking in every direction after running his fingers through it in anxiety all day, he was wearing sweat pants and an old hoodie that now sported a very chic white spot on the shoulder from when Penny had spit her milk on him. He hadn't even remembered to moisturize for the past two days.

But when he turned back to look at Blaine, he found him standing there, with his hands in his pockets, and looking at Kurt the same way he had always looked at him – like there was nothing more beautiful in the world, like there was nothing he'd rather be looking at than him.

It made him shiver, and his heart raced with hope and anticipation.

“I almost didn't come,” Blaine commented, obviously wanting to break the ice. “I imagined you would be in Ohio with your family.”

“No, actually they were coming here, but their flight got cancelled,” Kurt replied. He gestured towards the couch and they both sat. “How have you been?”

“Okay, I guess. I was, uh, pretty upset after we broke up, but… I feel better now,” Blaine said, suddenly very interested in his own hands. He unwrapped his scarf and placed it on the couch next to him. “I should have probably been more understanding.”

“I should have been honest,” Kurt hurried to say, earnestly. “It wasn't your fault that things simply blew up. You had no idea what was going on.” He cleared his throat. “Although… I didn't want you to jump to conclusions.”

Blaine tilted his head, silently inviting him to explain further.

“It was never about killing time with you,” Kurt said, forcing himself to look Blaine in the eyes. He needed to make him understand. “At first, after Cooper's wedding, it was about feeling alive in a way I rarely allowed myself to. And then… well… I started having feelings for you, and I just didn't know how to deal with it. I'm sorry I ruined everything.”

“Santana was particularly helpful at explaining your reasons the other day,” Blaine muttered, but when Kurt's eyes filled with panic, he patted his hand to reassure him. “Don't worry. She didn't say anything bad or embarrassing. She was just… painfully honest.”

“That's Santana for you,” Kurt sighed tiredly.

They were silent for a moment, as if measuring their options, and then Blaine simply decided to change the subject, as if saying without words that he didn't need to hear more about that.

“So, how's being a father? How's the baby?” He asked, and the genuine spark of interest in his gaze sent a pleasant shiver down Kurt's spine.

“It's generally wonderful,” Kurt replied sincerely. “Today was just a bad day. Penny just cried and cried for absolutely no reason and I had no idea what to do. But she's so lovely, and I love her so much already…”

“Were you there for the birth?”

That question started a conversation that shouldn't have been so easy considering how things had ended between them. Kurt told him all about Tanya, the adoption process and the birth, up to the moment he held Penelope in his arms for the first time and how surreal it had felt. He showed him the first picture he had taken of her at the hospital, and admitted that he had considered sending it to Blaine, but thought he wouldn't appreciate it.

“I would have loved to get the picture,” Blaine said softly, and Kurt hadn't realized how close they were now, how they had shifted gradually towards each other.

“Then I'm sorry I didn't send it,” Kurt murmured, and he only noticed he was staring at Blaine's lips when Blaine began to lean in. “Oh. Oh, Blaine… what about… this isn't what it used to be. You get two for the price of one, now, I don't… I don't think that's what you want…”

Blaine's hand cupped Kurt's jaw, and he was melting at the simple touch already. “You never really asked me what I wanted, Kurt…”

“You said you hated children,” Kurt retorted, trying to stay conscious, which was proving to be very hard considering how close Blaine was.

“I panicked,” Blaine replied. “I know nothing about babies. But I'm a fast learner.”

“Doesn't this freak you out?” Kurt asked, as his own hands fisted Blaine's coat. God, he wanted to kiss him so badly. “I thought this was going to send you running for the hills.”

“It did. I got there, breathed a little, and came back,” Blaine shrugged, and oh, the smug bastard was smiling at him. “I wouldn't be here if I didn't want this, Kurt. The truth is… I lived my life feeling bitter and resentful for way too long. And when you showed up, I understood that, no matter how many problems I had, happiness was there for me to take it if I wanted it. And I want it, Kurt.”

Even with an appropriate amount of sleep and optimum brain function, Kurt would have been absolutely unable to stop himself from swooning at that. This was the man he wanted to be with. He may have appeared in his life with awful timing, but Kurt wasn't stupid – if Blaine wanted him, Kurt would have him, and he would give himself back to Blaine, and hope they could grab that happiness and never let it go.

Kurt had been waiting for someone like Blaine for a very, very long time, and it looked like Blaine had been waiting for him, too.

Well, the wait was over.

Kurt leaned in the rest of the distance and captured Blaine's lips in his. Blaine kissed back immediately, holding onto Kurt like he was afraid that he would vanish if he let go. Their arms closed around each other, pulling each other closer, as their mouths parted. The first touch of Blaine's tongue against his felt like coming home – it made him shudder with pleasure, and he realized his body had missed Blaine as much as his heart had.

Kurt panted heavily when they pulled away to breathe, Blaine's lips immediately began to trail over his jaw and down his neck, driving Kurt slowly crazy. “Would it be incredibly inappropriate if I ask you to stay the night?” He asked in a breathy voice.

He could feel Blaine's smile against his pulse point. “Would it be incredibly inappropriate if I ask you to move this to the bedroom?”

Kurt whined. “I love it when you're inappropriate. Yes, yes, please.”

They pulled at each other's clothes as they moved through the living room and down the hallway, and by the time they reached Kurt's bedroom, they were only in their underwear, and Blaine was sucking a very impressive hickey on Kurt's collarbone.

“Oh god, merry Christmas to me,” Kurt mumbled, throwing his head back and burying his fingers in Blaine's hair to keep him in that spot.

Blaine sat on the edge of the bed and pulled Kurt onto his lap. His hands settled on Kurt's ass, grabbing needily at him through the thin layer of fabric. “Speaking of Christmas… I assume you have no plans since your parents are stuck in Ohio?”

“Uh-huh,” Kurt murmured, closing his eyes and rocking a little.

“Well… I'm going to Cooper's place for lunch,” Blaine explained, and his fingers dipped beneath the waistband of Kurt's briefs. “We sort of reconciled, and he's been bugging me about spending the holidays with him and Michelle…”

“Blaine, sweetheart,” Kurt whined urgently. “I'm very happy you made up with your brother, and I want to hear all about it later, but please don't talk about him when our dicks are touching.”

Blaine chuckled, and thrust up, making Kurt groan. “You have a very valid point.”

“Good. Now please fuck me,” Kurt said ardently, making sure he was staring right into Blaine's eyes as he said it. He watched him gulp, and he would have sworn he grew impossibly harder against him.

“Oh god, merry Christmas to me,” Blaine said, before pulling Kurt in for a new, passionate kiss.

*

The parted curtains allowed the glow of New York City to sneak into the room. Kurt shifted so he was on his side, and pressed himself close to Blaine, placing a hand on his chest and feeling the racing of his heart.

Blaine wrapped his arm around him, letting his fingers caress the curve of his ass, and smiled at him. “Hi.”

“Hi you,” Kurt replied, humming in contentment. He was so tired that he was shocked he didn't fall asleep as soon as he came down from his high – it had been, after all, one mind-blowing orgasm. “I've missed you.”

“I've missed you, too,” Blaine said softly. He pressed a little kiss to Kurt's nose, making him giggle like a schoolgirl with a crush. “And I hope I'm not rushing into things here, but Kurt, I…”

The sound of crying filled the bedroom, startling Kurt out of his daze, and stopping Blaine's words. Penelope was awake.

Kurt reached for the baby monitor on his nightstand and pulled the covers away. “I'd better go see her. I'll be back in…”

Blaine grabbed his arm gently, and looked at him, hesitant, biting his lip. “Uhm, can I?”

Kurt stared at him, surprised. “You want to?”

“If that's okay with you?” Blaine said, looking less and less sure with every second that Kurt seemed to take without answering.

If there was anything left of his heart after Blaine had melted it earlier, it was gone now. Kurt kissed his cheek and smiled. “Okay.”

Blaine grinned and got out of bed. He retrieved his underwear and grabbed Kurt's sweatpants, which were a little long on him, before leaving the bedroom. Kurt stayed in bed, holding the baby monitor and staring at the ceiling, waiting, waiting…

“Hello there,” Blaine's voice said through the monitor. “Oh, aren't you a gorgeous little princess? Yes, you are. What's wrong, my lady? Why are you crying, huh? Are you hungry? Oh.” There was a pause, and then Blaine's voice got a little louder. “Hey, Kurt? I think she needs a new diaper!”

Kurt bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. “Alright! I'm coming, don't panic!”

“No, no, just tell me where everything is, I can do it!” Blaine insisted earnestly.

Kurt blinked, once again surprised. “Uh, there's a basket on the middle shelf of her changing table! Everything's there!”

“Thank you!” Blaine exclaimed, and then went back to talking to the baby, who had quietened considerably. “Okay, missy. Let's do this. Oh wow, it soaked through your clothes. For such a tiny little thing, you sure stink like a fifty year old truck driver…”

Kurt chuckled and decided to fish his underwear from under the bed, in case Blaine needed rescuing. He slid them on, switched the monitor off, and walked to Penelope's bedroom. He leaned on the doorway, crossed his arms over his chest, and was welcomed by one of the most beautiful sights he had ever seen.

Blaine was clumsily unbuttoning Penny's pajamas, but he was smiling at her like she was the sun after a week of rain, and whispering sweet little nothings that Kurt couldn't even decipher.

This was what he had always wanted. Maybe he had gotten it out of order – baby first, man of his dreams second – but it didn't matter. It was perfect in its own quirky way, and Kurt couldn't have it any other way. When had Kurt Hummel done things exactly how the world expected him to?

Blaine caught Penelope's tiny foot in his hand and kissed the sole gently. For someone who had freaked out completely after messing up a bottle, this was incredible. Sure, he was clearly having trouble figuring out how diapers worked, but the adoring look in his eyes more than made up for it. Kurt's chest was filled with warmth, and he understood exactly how Blaine felt – Penny seemed to make people fall in love with her instantly, regardless of what their previous opinion on babies was. It was only logical that it only took Blaine five seconds of holding her to fall in love with her, and from the looks of it, Penny wasn't exactly upset about Blaine being there, either.

What else could I possibly want? Kurt thought.

Nothing. This is perfect, just like this.

“Blaine?” Kurt murmured softly. Blaine lifted Penelope and cradled her against his chest. He was holding a poop-filled diaper in his other hand, and looked at Kurt, a little lost at what to do with it, until Kurt pointed at the diaper genie in the corner. It was probably the least romantic scenario in the world, but Kurt honestly couldn't imagine a better moment. “I love you.”

Blaine's intake of breath was the only sound in the quiet apartment. His eyes were bright, his lips parted, and Penelope was snuggled against his bare chest. Kurt had never seen something as beautiful as that before.

Blaine took a few steps until he was right in front of Kurt. Kurt put a hand on Penelope's back and another on Blaine's arm, needing to touch them both to make sure they were real. Blaine leaned their foreheads together and closed his eyes, an expression of contentment and peace taking over his features.

“I love you, too, Kurt.”

It was simple and unadorned. They shared a quick little kiss, and then put Penny in her crib, watching her in silence for a moment until they were sure she was deeply asleep. Then Kurt offered his hand to Blaine, who accepted it without a second's hesitation, and guided him back to his own bedroom, where they cuddled under the covers and went to sleep. No, there wasn't anything special about that moment, and yet… it couldn't have been better.

Well, Kurt thought as he drifted off to sleep, nestled safely in Blaine's arms, we can save the romantic moments for another time. After all, I've always wanted a big, romantic wedding…

*