Austin rolled his shoulders and let out a hiss of pain as he rode the elevator up to his and Blaine’s apartment. These long hours especially on his days off were really killing him but he needed to put in the time if he wanted to prove himself to his Attendings. He was starting to get more surgeries which meant he had impressed his bosses. If Austin impressed his Attendings now then when it came to applying for surgical fellowships, he would have their support.
Stepping out of the elevator, he made his way to the door of their apartment but didn’t open it right away. He took a deep breath and mentally prepared himself for the fight Blaine was most likely to pick for spending his entire day off at the hospital. Walking into the apartment, he found Blaine curled up on the couch with a bowl of pasta that smelt like it had just been cooked.
“Hey” Blaine smiled weakly as he looked over the back of the couch at his boyfriend “Dinner is on the stove if you’re hungry”
“Yeah, thanks” Austin nodded and discarded his bag and coat by the door before making his way into the kitchen. Dishing himself a bowl, he sat down beside Blaine on the couch unsure how close he could sit, he couldn’t gauge his boyfriend’s mood. Blaine laid the blanket that rested over his knees over Austin’s as well as their feet intertwined.
“How’s your patient?”
“Uh, not good” the young doctor shrugged gently “I had to take him back into surgery today to repair a tear in the heart muscle. He’s in the ICU and I’ve got a couple interns on constant watch. We need him to make it through the night”
“Why didn’t you stay?”
“All I would be doing is waiting with my interns. I’d rather he home with you and Hunter... Where is Hunter?”
“Asleep” Blaine chuckled “He had a big day realising he’s a natural born skater. He was doing so well”
“You saw him skating?”
“Yeah” he shrugged “I caught up with Kurt and Hunter at the rink. It was a little depressing when my son skated rings around me”
“You skated with them” Austin stated with a slight nod of his head. He wasn’t happy that Blaine spent the afternoon with Kurt doing an activity Austin knew his boyfriend enjoyed. The young doctor had felt like he was slowly losing Blaine back to Kurt as he became more prominent in their lives. While Kurt spent his time with Hunter, Austin could see how their friendship affected Blaine and his feelings toward his ex-fianc�.
Austin needed to somehow show Blaine what he would miss if he left.
Abandoning his bowl of pasta, Austin took Blaine’s also and set them on the coffee table. He edged closer to his boyfriend slowly “Did your attempt to skate tire you out like it did Hunter?” he asked with a soft chuckle knowing Blaine wasn’t the best on a pair of skates.
“I wasn’t out on the ice long. I’m not tired yet...” he smiled hoping this was leading to another favoured activity he hadn’t shared with Austin in a fortnight or so. He had missed his boyfriend so much that any thought of Kurt or the hospital slipped his mind.
Shifting on the couch til Blaine was lying down underneath him; Austin placed feather light kisses along his boyfriend’s neck knowing it drove him wild. Austin rolled his hips down to meet Blaine’s showing him exactly how he wanted to tire him out.
“Austin” Blaine gasped softly and pushed at Austin’s shoulders gently until he was looking back at him “Bedroom, naked now”
“Yes, sir”

XXXXX

Blaine groaned softly as he felt Austin shift off his chest. He immediately missed the warmth of his boyfriend’s bare torso pressed against his own.
“Don’t go” he sighed softly
“I have to check on my patient and then I’ll be home” Austin assured him as he pressed a soft kiss to Blaine’s forehead “I can’t handle a full shift at work, I’m exhausted. I promise I won’t be long”
“That’s a promise you’ve broken before” Blaine snapped softly as he sat up against the headboard. He had heard his boyfriend say those exact words time and time again and he rarely kept that promise.
Austin crawled back across the bed to his boyfriend cupping his face gently in his hands. He wasn’t going to keep Blaine if they were going to fight again. Pressing his lips to Blaine’s softly, Austin teased his boyfriend with a sneaky tongue along his bottom lip before pulling away.
“I’m not going to break that promise today” Austin insisted “I’m going to come home, take Hunter to hang out with Mercedes for the afternoon so we can finish what we started last night”
“I like the sound of that” he smiled as he linked his fingers with Austin’s one last time.
“Go back to sleep beautiful boy, I’ll be back soon”
Austin kissed his boyfriend’s forehead softly before pushing himself off the bed and getting ready for work. Sadly there wasn’t much he could do for his patient until he was a little stronger. Right now Austin just needed to make sure his interns hadn’t done anything stupid through the night. He quickly showered and got changed before making himself a bowl of cereal. Checking on Hunter he found the seven year old still fast asleep snoring softly.
Austin finished his routine swiftly and within twenty minutes he was at the door grabbing his coat. The young doctor wrapped his scarf around his neck as he shut the door behind himself and made his way downstairs. Emerging from the elevator on the ground floor, Austin was caught off guard by a familiar face entering the building.
“Off to work again?” Kurt asked as he stopped in front of Austin. Both men eyed each other off cautiously. Neither liked the other and it seemed very clear in their expressions.
“Patient that I need to check on. Can I help you with something?” Austin answered as his jaw began to clench.
“No, it’s fine. I’m just returning this to Blaine” Kurt smiled sweetly as he twisted Blaine’s scarf in his hands sensing Austin’s anger growing. “He left it in my car yesterday when I dropped him and Hunter home”
“I can give it to him”
“No, it’s fine. You’re on your way to work; I’ll only be a minute”
“I will give it to him” the young doctor insisted as he held out his hand to Kurt. Snatching it from Kurt’s grasps, he clutched it tight in his hands “Is that all?”
“I just wanted to check on Hunter as well, he was pretty exhausted yesterday afternoon. I really won’t be long; I have to get back to New York”
“Hunter’s fine, he was asleep when I left so maybe you should just head back to New York and stay there”
“Excuse me?”
“You don’t belong here” Austin began as he crossed his arms tight across his chest “Blaine and Hunter were fine before you showed up not that you chose to see them. When were you going to remember you had a responsibility to them if you hadn’t happened to come into the restaurant that night?”
“Blaine and Hunter are fine now with me here and who are you to tell me whether I care about my son or not?”
“He’s not your son...”
“Yeah well he’s not yours either” Kurt spat back as he took a step toward Austin. Barely an inch shorter than the doctor, Kurt wasn’t intimidated by him “At least I’m here trying. You’re off to work... again”
“I’m sorry if my job involves saving people’s lives while yours is just prancing back and forth on a stage”
“That kind of attitude is why Blaine doesn’t sing much anymore. Or really he just sings our song”
Austin took a step closer to Kurt so they were but an inch apart. This was the last straw and he wasn’t going to let Kurt win “You need to stay the hell away from my family. You are just ruining every good thing Blaine did for Hunter and himself when they moved here”
“And what are you going to do if I don’t?”
“You grew up in Ohio right?” Kurt nodded “I grew up down south where you get more than just pushed against a locker for being gay. I learnt to fight back”
“You’re not a violent person...”
“No but when it comes to my family I will do absolutely everything in my power so scared and unreliable jerks like you don’t hurt them like you already have. Every time you go back to New York to live the fabulous life you abandoned your family for, you lose a little bit more of Blaine’s trust. You may as well just stay away now before you hurt him again”
“I’m not going to hurt him...”
“Didn’t you make that same pledge when you and Blaine got engaged?” Austin asked with a sly smirk “Look where that got you...”
Kurt didn’t realise how Austin had gotten into his head until thoughts of doubt suddenly clouded his mind. He realised that maybe Austin was right. He’d run before, what’s to say he won’t do it again. Kurt stuffed his hands in his pockets needed to get away from Austin and that building for a while. He needed to clear the doubt from his mind.
“Just tell Blaine that I will talk to him soon” Kurt managed to say softly before he turned on his heel and briskly walked back to his car. Slamming the door of his SUV behind him, Kurt took a few deep breaths. He didn’t want Austin to be right but he couldn’t help but think that maybe he was. Kurt wasn’t the one that came to DC looking for Blaine and Hunter, their meeting was purely accidental. He had thought it was fate or a stroke of luck but maybe it wasn’t meant to be like this. Blaine had been happy with Austin before Kurt came into the picture. Along with Hunter they were a family.
Maybe Kurt was better off back in New York.