"Dad," Elliot began, his voice solemn and far too adult-like for a cherub-faced boy of seven years old. "I have something important to tell you."

Kurt put his fork down beside his plate, dabbing a napkin at the corner of his mouth before speaking. "Okay. What's up, Ell?"

Elliot drew in a deep breath; his chest puffing up like a balloon before his words rushed out on an exhale. "Ihaveagirlfriend."

Kurt's eyebrows shot up, but he quickly reigned in the laugh that threatened to burst from his lungs. "Oh?" he said, his voice a little higher than normal.

"Yes." Elliot's expression was still stone-serious. Kurt bit the inside of his bottom lip as hard as he could stand to stop himself from grinning. "Her name is Maya. She's the smartest girl in my class."

"Well, that's very impressive, Ell." Kurt was already etching the conversation into his permanent memory, placing it alongside countless other warm moments the two had shared over the years together – his son, at the ripe age of seven, telling his father about his first girlfriend over a quiet Friday night dinner. "Congratulations."

"I-it's okay, right?" Elliot's voice faltered for the first time, truer to his normally shy demeanor. "If I have a girlfriend? Instead of boyfriends like you?"

Kurt's face softened immediately. "Oh, Ell." He reached across their tiny kitchen table and held his son's freckled hand, still chubby with baby fat and sticky from his day at school. "You can like whoever you want to like. I don't care if it's boys or girls, as long as you're always happy."

Elliot cocked his head, considering Kurt's words for a few moments before nodding curtly. "Okay," he said, pausing to take an enormous bite of his pasta, and Kurt once again had to hide his smile over how quickly kids could shift from one emotion to another. Elliot chewed and swallowed purposefully, then spoke again. "I invited her to the parade tomorrow. It's, like, a...a date."

"Oh, did you now?" Kurt was truly surprised at that. "What do Maya’s mom and dad think about her going to the pride parade?"

Elliot's sky blue eyes sparkled with joy. "She doesn't have a mom. She's just like me!"

***

"But Daddy!"

"I'm sorry, Maya. We can't go to the parade tomorrow." Blaine's words were muffled by the refrigerator he had his upper body buried in as he rummaged through leftovers in search of anything edible to serve his daughter for dinner. "Daddy has to be at the theatre at noon for his show. You know how important Daddy's musical is."

Blaine let out a tiny aha! when he found the remnants of the chicken he'd roasted two afternoons ago, hidden behind juice boxes and yogurt cups and dozens of packs of string cheese. When he pulled himself out of the fridge, Tupperware in hand, he was greeted by his daughter’s famous pout – one of epic proportions. “Maya…” he sighed.

“Please, Daddy!” Maya looked like she was about to burst into tears. “I really really wanna go. I told Elly we’d be there.”

“Who’s Elly?”

Maya instantly blushed, her golden cheeks reddening to a perfect pink hue. “My boyfriend,” she whispered, dropping her hazel eyes to the floor and swinging her upper body back and forth in that nervous, girly way she always did when she was about to burst from excitement.

Blaine nearly dropped the container to the floor. He managed to slide it onto the counter before crouching down to meet his daughter at eye level. “Wait. Your what?”

“My boyfriend.” Maya glanced up at her father through long, dark lashes that always reminded Blaine of a fairytale princess, spun in dreams and fantasies and certainly not standing before him as his own flesh and blood. “He asked me on a date to the parade. He’s going with his daddy.”

“Okay. Hold up.” Blaine held a hand in the air as he stood, leaning back against the kitchen counter and cracking open the lid of the container to reach for a piece of chicken. “Your boyfriend – we’ll leave that one alone for the moment – your boyfriend invited you on a date to the gay pride parade. With his dad.”

“Uh huh. He said he and his daddy go every year.” Maya eyed the chicken that Blaine popped into his mouth, and Blaine offered her the next piece he snagged, wincing a little when he realized he was feeding his daughter cold chicken for dinner. Another night, another meal on the fly.

“Do they?”

“Yup! His daddy is just like you!” She grinned up at him, bright-eyed and innocent, and Blaine wondered if he would ever stop falling in love with his daughter.

“Just like me, huh?”

Maya nodded, her head bobbing up and down exaggeratedly as she chewed noisily on chicken.

“And where are you supposed to meet…Elly?”

“Fifth and eighth!” she chirped, holding out a tiny hand for another piece of chicken. “At nine o’clock.”

“Nine o–” Blaine cut himself off with a sigh. “Are you gonna get up that early? That’s a long train ride from here.”

“Yes, yes!” Maya jumped up and down, sending her pale purple skirt billowing around her brown knees. “I promise, Daddy! Please!”

This is how it starts, Blaine thought wryly as he eyed his daughter’s pleading stare, her plump hands curled together in tight prayer. Getting me to take her on dates when she’s only seven. Soon enough she’ll be dragging me to Tiffany’s.

“We can only stay a little while,” Blaine warned. “When I say we have to go, we have to go. Daddy can’t be late for work.”

Maya squealed and threw her arms around Blaine’s legs. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou, Daddy!” She pressed a loud kiss against his dark denim pants before turning and running through the living room to her bedroom.

“Hey!” Blaine called after her. “Where do you think you’re going? We haven’t even had dinner.”

“I have to pick out something to wear, Daddy!” came Maya’s muffled voice from her bedroom.

Blaine shook his head, rubbing a palm over his tired eyes and chuckling as he reached for another piece of cold chicken.