Author's Notes: Callie had decided for her 18th birthday she wanted a new bookcase. It was definitely warranted considering the books that were piled not only on her two existing bookcases, but on her desk, around the bed and in available corners of the room. Kurt had searched for weeks for one that would fit in with the furniture she already had, but to no avail. He had found a guy who said he'd make them one to measure, but Blaine had protested saying it was a lot of money to spend on something he could do himself. Kurt of course had scoffed, reminding him of his attempts at DIY back when they had bought their first apartment together, Blaine however had stubbornly insisted that he was more than capable of building a bookcase for their daughter. He had picked Burt's brain on the subject when he and Carol had visited at the weekend and gone out with him to buy the wood required.

So it was that two days later Kurt was holed up in his office working on some designs he had been stressing over for the past month, Thomas was out seeing a movie for a friends birthday, Callie had glued herself to the computer in the family room and Blaine, Blaine was in the garage, surrounded by wood. He had taken the measurements, and had just finished cutting all the pieces to size. The ground around his feet was covered in sawdust, he had had the fore thought to back the car out a way to avoid scratches. His back ached, sweat gathered on his brow and Blaine was quickly realising why it would have been easier to just pay the guy. However he felt somewhat accomplished, having checked and double checked the pieces he was now sanding it all down, ready to be primed and painted the same deep purple as the other bookcases in Callie's room.

A head poked out of the kitchen door.

"Hey Dad, I'm making coffee, you want some?" Callie was practically yelling and Blaine glanced across the road to see a neighbor turn his head at the noise.

"Jeez Cal, I'm right here, not in Africa, pipe down a little." Callie just rolled her eyes and looked at him expectantly.

"Yeah, that's be great, where's your Dad?" Callie pointed to the sky, signalling Kurt was still sequestered away in his study before tossing her long flat ironed hair over her shoulder and disappearing again. Blaine continued on in his work, ignoring the persistent ache in his lower back. Nearly ten minutes later Callie came out, two steaming mugs clutched in her hands. She put Blaine's down on a shelf near the front of the garage and leaned against the car while she sipped hers. Blaine raised an eyebrow at her.

"If your Dad catches you leaning against the car you're done for." She just shrugged and continued watching him. He looked over his daughter, hardly believing she was nearly eighteen. At seventeen she was hardly geriatric, but she had really come into her own in the last year. She was taller than Blaine, with long hair which usually fell in curls, today having been flat ironed into submission and left to fall half way down her back. She was slender like Kurt, despite Blaine being her biological father and had deep brown eyes which were far too sharp for her own good. He joined her by the car and gratefully gulped down some coffee.

"You sure you don't just want to call the guy Dad found?" A dry smirk graced Callie's features.

"I am perfectly capable of building a bookcase young lady." Blaine replied indignantly.

"Oh come on Dad, if we'd gone with Dad's option we'd already have it by now and you wouldn't be doing your back in." She wandered over to the planks and squatted down appearing to inspect them.

"You can help if you want, you know take some of that strain of your old Dad's back."

Callie snorted and returned to join her Dad.

"No thanks, I know I'm crap at this stuff." Blaine pushed her arm playfully just as the kitchen door opened. They both jumped away from the car completely ungracefully.

"I already know you've both been leaning on the car, and if there's a scratch on it you're both in trouble." Callie and Blaine exchanged looks.

"Honestly, you'd think one of you would have realised my study overlooks the garage. I've been watching you for the last five minutes." Kurt crossed his arms teasingly. Blaine just shrugged and went to finish sanding the wood.

"What happened to my coffee? Would it be the one left to go cold on the kitchen side?" Callie's eyes went wide and she ducked into the kitchen to retrieve it.

Kurt looked over the progress Blaine had made, then looked over his husband a little less critically.

"Still intent on doing this then?" He pressed a kiss to Blaine's cheek. Blaine hummed happily and nodded, bouncing a little on his toes.

"Yup! I'm getting there, all I have to do is finish sanding this piece then I can prime it and it can be painted this afternoon. You just wait. You'll be regretting your lack of faith in my Dad abilities." Callie reappeared with the coffee, handing it to her Dad and disappeared inside again.

"Hmm, I'll believe it when I see it. I still say we should have just called Mr Dawson, he'd have made it up days ago."

"Yes, but then it wouldn't have been made with love, like this one will be. Besides your Dad gave me some pointers, how could I possibly go wrong?!" Kurt smiled fondly at Blaine, secretly he loved how enthusiastic Blaine was about this, but it was kind of fun to make fun of him too.

"My Dad isn't God you know. He fails sometimes too. You should have seen the shelves he built me when I was ten. I tried to put my tiara collection up there and they slid right off!" Blaine's brow furrowed for a second before his features brightened once again.

"Yeah, it's all practice, you gotta have a rough draft before the finished product!" Kurt shook his head, pushed a curl off Blaine's forehead and made his way back inside.

**

Kurt had been in his study since lunch, not realising the time until Callie had shouted up stairs that dinner was nearly ready. He rubbed his over used eyes and plodded downstairs. The smell wafting through the house was intoxicating, Callie had asked to do dinner this week as she'd wanted to try out some new recipe's on the family, so far everything she'd cooked had been beautiful. He stepped into the kitchen and the familiar cacophony of noise as Thomas clattered around putting plates on the table, Blaine washed his hands, pushing his paint daubed sleeves up past his elbows and Callie put the finishing touches to the meal.

They settled into a comfortable conversation led by Thomas as he recounted his day. Over the past couple of years he'd not grown much, he seemed to be taking on a build more like Blaine's, but his facial features were all Rachel, when she acted as surrogate for them the only fear she had admitted to was if one of them got her nose and grew to hate it. Well, Thomas had certainly got her nose, but he didn't seem to care. Neither did his girlfriend if the time they spent together was any indication. He talked animatedly, then seemed to take in Blaine's appearance.

"Dad, you didn't actually try to build Callie's bookcase did you?" He goggled at the purple paint daubed on Blaine's shirt before looking at Kurt, seemingly for confirmation.

"Of course he did, what do you think he's been talking about for the past few days?" Kurt started cutting into the bacon wrapped chicken Callie had prepared, seeing soft cheese ooze out of it's center before Thomas spoke again.

"I dunno, I just thought it'd never happen, you'd end up buying it and that'd be that." He shrugged and continued shoveling food in his mouth in typical teenage boy fashion. Kurt and Blaine raised eyebrows at each-other and said nothing more on the subject.

The family finished up and Kurt enlisted Thomas' help with washing up while Blaine trudged back out to the garage to finish painting the last piece. He ran his hand gently over the first piece he painted, seeing how the paint was drying. He'd molded the top piece with a jigsaw and sanded it down into a smooth arc. He was rather proud of the job and couldn't wait to see it put together. He switched the garage light off, leaving the door open to let the air circulate.

**

The next day was quiet for Blaine, Kurt was at work, Callie had dance class and Thomas was still asleep. So he checked the paint had dried thoroughly and didn't need another coat before starting to assemble the bookcase.

Several hours later, after Blaine and a very drowsy Thomas had hoisted the thing upstairs into Callie's room, Blaine was relaxing on the sofa when he heard the door click open. Kurt and Callie came bustling in. Evidently Kurt had picked Callie up on his way home. They were in the middle of a heated debate about Lady Gaga's latest outfit.

"No Dad, at her age it's just wrong. I get that she was a trendsetter and all that, but really? We don't all need to know the exact size and shape of her wrinkles."

"No see, that's why it's groundbreaking. She showing the world she doesn't care about these imperfections and still daring to wear whatever the hell she likes."

"Would you show off all your back wrinkles?" She turned to face him, her hair (today left to it's natural curl) bouncing around her shoulders.

"I don't have back wrinkles!" Blaine giggled from his place in the family room, imagining the look of disdain on Kurt's face.

"But if you did?"

"Well... no, but that doesn't mean she should be condemned for..."

"Sorry Dad, you already lost." She grabbed her bag and headed for the stairs. Kurt stood for a minute, not quite sure how he'd been outwitted by his seventeen year old daughter before catching sight of Blaine on the sofa and smiling warmly.

"Hey you." He moved to pull Blaine up into a hug, but before Blaine was even on his feet fully a shriek came from upstairs, then what sounded like a herd of elephants came charging down. Suddenly Blaine found himself with his arms full of ecstatic teenage girl.

"Oh my God, it's perfect, it's so pretty. Thank you." Her voice was bubbly and happy and made Blaine smile and hold her a little closer.

"I'm glad you like it Cal." Kurt looked puzzled for a minute, then it seemed to dawn on him.

"You finished it?" Blaine nodded and followed Kurt upstairs to look. Kurt stopped in the doorway, just admiring the bookcase. It stood at just under six foot tall, the same purple as the rest of the room and really, he thought, if he'd known Blaine could shape wood like that he'd have enlisted him properly years ago.

"Wow, it's... you did a really good job." Kurt stepped aside to let Callie and Blaine into the room.

"Don't sound so surprised, I did study woodwork at Dalton you know." they watched Callie pile books onto hours of Blaine's labour happily and decided to leave her to it.

"Sooo..." Kurt looked at Blaine questioningly.

"Can I check to see if you've got any back wrinkles?!" Kurt rolled his eyes and turned on his heel, heading back downstairs, mumbling about meddling daughters and troublesome husbands. Blaine grinned to himself and followed, proud he'd achieved something for his family.