Party Time

"I should listen to you more often, Blaine. That shower felt amazing."

Blaine couldn't believe his eyes. It was as if Kurt had done a complete 180. He didn't want to say anything to ruin the mood, but he couldn't not say how much better he looked.

"If I knew you were gonna look so happy after a twenty minute shower, I would've sent you in there earlier. You look more relaxed already - and we haven't even started the party yet. You're gonna make Jeff and Nick cry."

Kurt raised an eyebrow at that. "And why would my good mood make Niff upset? I thought a good mood was better than my unpredictable, and often unreasonable, bouts of depression."

"Oh, believe me, we all appreciate the lack of 'depressed Kurt', but those two had several plans in mind to cheer you up...and if you don't need any more cheering up by the time they get here, I don't know what they may do. You know how those two are - sometimes they're more diva-ish than you, which is a hard thing to do."

"I could always pretend to be in a bad mood and let them 'help' for a little bit. Nick I can handle, but I can't deal with a pouty Jeff. He's good at making you feel guilty."

"Just keep that in mind when you see them, I suppose. In the meantime, I'm gonna hop in the shower. Do you need help getting dressed?"

"...if you don't mind, at least with the socks and pants. I think I can handle the rest."

Now, even though Puck has done the most check-ups, Blaine and Finn had also seen more of Kurt than any of them would be willing to admit. In all actuality, the only one Kurt was really okay with seeing all of him was Blaine. Seriously, he was the boyfriend after all and no offense to Puck and Finn, but boyfriends trump friends and stepbrothers.

Blaine couldn't resist rubbing Kurt's belly before helping with the aforementioned socks and pants. Blaine was a little surprised, however, at how Kurt's belly felt. It didn't seem as 'squishy' as it did before.

But how to ask Kurt if he was in labor?

"Honey, have you had any more contractions since breakfast?"

"I had one right before I got out of the shower. It was kinda weird, though. It didn't feel like any of the last few I've had. It was a lot stronger than that one during breakfast, but afterwards I felt so much better. Why? You think I should be more worried about it?"

Blaine didn't want to ruin the good mood so soon, but he wanted to play it safe. "Kurt, lay back for a second. I don't want to worry you, and please don't take this the wrong way. You're not as 'squishy' anymore."

Kurt raised an eyebrow, "What the hell does that mean, Anderson? 'Squishy' is not a term I think of when I'm feeling up myself."

Blaine knew he had to word the next few things carefully. "Okay, 'squishy' isn't the right word...soft, maybe?" He was getting an evil look. "Kurt, do you remember what Matt said were signs of labor?"

"Yes, Blaine I do. What point are you trying to make here?"

"Give me your hand." Blaine figured actions would speak louder than words. He put Kurt's hand on his body, just under his abs, where he had that last little bit of body fat. "Feel how this is. You've been like this for most of the pregnancy, I know you've noticed. Now feel your bump." Blaine moved his hand to Kurt's lower belly. "Feel that? It's not soft like it was. I know you've felt stretched out for a while now, but your skin feels even tighter."

It was finally starting to click for Kurt. "I'm not in labor Blaine; I can't be in labor yet." Blaine saw the signs of panic and quickly tried to reassure Kurt. "I'm not saying you are in labor, but that you could be soon. We could still have plenty of time before she comes out. Panicking will get us nowhere; we just need to be proactive about this.

"We'll get you dressed and comfortable. I'm gonna take a quick shower. Then we'll get a plan in place. Are you cool with that?"

Kurt could only nod in agreement; he wasn't sure he could stay quiet if he opened his mouth. Blaine could see the underlying worry in his eyes and did the one thing that could placate him, for now: a soft, loving kiss.

"Everything will be fine. If you have another contraction, time it. You've had several since last night, but none were the same. When they start to sync up is the time for us to worry, not a minute before. I'll be right out." Another kiss, and Blaine went to take one of the quickest showers ever.

Kurt had relaxed again after that second kiss, but couldn't help but wonder, What if that contraction was my water breaking? I was in the shower; how would I have been able to tell the difference between water and amniotic fluid if they're both clear? I would've noticed if I was bleeding, and I wasn't. Kurt resumed rubbing his belly and started talking to it.

"Baby girl, you are driving us crazy, and we can't wait to meet you, but we can manage a little longer, can't we? You're already late, so what's another day or two, huh?" Kurt slapped his forehead, oh my god I'm trying to bargain with a baby who isn't here yet. Clearly I'm losing whatever sanity is left.

Meanwhile, Blaine was having a mini-freak-out in the shower.

Everything's gonna be fine. Kurt's fine, the baby's fine, I know the weather isn't that great but no big deal, right? It's just rain. Sucks that Matt is working, but at least he'll be easy to find if we need him. And it's too bad Neal couldn't bring Casey and RJ around because they're sick. He's done this twice, but we can easily call him too. Burt and Carole are away, but we can handle it.

Right?

It could always be worse.

Blaine should really stop thinking negative thoughts.

Blaine walked back into the bedroom to find Kurt was still on the bed, but lying on his side. He could hear him whispering and from what he could make out, Kurt was bribing his daughter. He also noticed that it had started raining already.

"Is that working for you, Kurt?"

Kurt had the grace to blush; he didn't realize Blaine was out of the shower. "A little. She's not kicking hard or moving too much, maybe she's starting to feel bad for freaking us out."

"Any more contractions?" Blaine asked, as he sat behind Kurt on the bed. Please say no.

"Not since the last one. I've been talking to her since you left and so far, so good. Maybe we'll be fine after all. No need to panic, right?"

Another kiss and, "Right. Now, are you ready to head back downstairs? Puck and Finn must be wondering where we are by now, and I'm sure you wanna see if they're playing video games or setting up."

"Yeah, let's go. Do we tell them - that I might be in labor?"

"I think we should. They will be helping if you are, and if you don't mention it, they'll beat me up for staying quiet. We don't have to say anything to anyone else, unless we have to...sound good?"

Kurt nodded in agreement, and then started to maneuver himself into a sitting position. "Actually, do you think you can ask them to come up here first?"

"Sure. I'll be right back."

While Blaine went downstairs to get Puck and Finn, a cell phone started ringing from the nightstand. Kurt didn't bother checking whose phone it was and just answered.

"Hello?"

"Kurt? It's Jeff. We're on the way there but we have a quick question."

"What's up?"

"David just got a call from the pizza place...they were asking if we would be able to pick up our order earlier than planned. They may have to close if the storm gets too bad - it's already pouring rather nicely out, if I do say so myself."

Kurt mentally smacked himself, "I totally forgot about the pizzas...um, yeah if you don't mind picking it up, that would be great. It's gonna suck not having hot pizza for later though. There's a slight chance that we could lose power - we won't be able to heat it up later."

"...I'll get back to you on that. Expect us within the next hour or so."

"Alright. See you soon."

Blaine, Finn, and Puck walked into the room, as Kurt hung up the phone. "Who was that, Kurt?"

"Jeff. They're picking up the pizzas now. The pizzeria is calling up the customers to see if they can pick-up orders early. Jeff said it's getting nasty out already, and that they'll be here in an hour." Kurt looked at Blaine and asked, "Did you tell them?'

"No, figured we could explain at the same time."

Puck and Finn glanced at each other, and then looked at Kurt and Blaine, "What's the matter? Are you okay?"

Kurt sighed and decided to just come right out and say it, "Guys, I think my water might've broken in the shower."

Two sets of jaws dropped. "Please tell me you're joking." "Princess, this isn't funny - I just checked you before breakfast!"

"I had another contraction in the shower. It hurt a lot more than the last few did, but I felt a lot better afterwards. Blaine pointed out that I'm not as 'squishy' " throws a look at Blaine, "and I can tell that she's not in the same position she was in before. She feels lower than earlier.

"Just thought we'd share that." Kurt sat back a little and stared at the boys to gauge their reactions.

Blaine couldn't help but laugh at their expressions. "Guys, she's not coming out right now...we definitely have a few hours at the very least. She might not even come out til tomorrow."

Kurt smirked at the still speechless boys. "I hope you don't stay this useless when I really need you later. How'd you two make out downstairs?"

Finn spoke up first. "We got the tables and chairs from the basement, grabbed the coolers from the garage, and we have tables set up for all of the snacks and supplies in the kitchen. Mike is bringing the ice. Rachel is bringing some stuff for herself. Everyone else is bringing snacks or games. And you said the guys are getting the pizzas...so I think that's everything."

"Well, I must say - I'm impressed. Nice job you two. Now, how about we head downstairs and wait for everyone to show up? We can hold the door open while they run in from the rain...on second thought, I need to pee first."

Blaine sat on the bed as Kurt made his way to the bathroom. The door had barely closed before Puck started to spaz.

"Dude, please tell me you're joking. She can't be born today. Tomorrow's fine, just not today."

"Seriously? Why would we joke about that? And you need to calm down. That's not helping anybody. Look at Finn - he isn't freaking out."

"Like hell I'm not freaking out! My niece has finally decided she's had enough and wants out, and she picks THE WORST DAY POSSIBLE! It's gonna just be us teenagers, no adults, no doctors, because more than likely, this storm is gonna be a bitch! How can YOU be so calm?!" pointing at Blaine.

"Because you two are freaking out enough for the rest of us!" Blaine hissed back. "Kurt didn't even realize that he could be in labor - you didn't see how he reacted when I told him he might be - he's been so miserable lately, he couldn't even tell the difference, until I showed him what I was talking about.

"So if you could just swallow any doubts you have right now, I'd appreciate it. You'll be no help for Kurt or the baby if you stay like this - and we'll need both of you. Do I make myself clear?"

He got two nods in response.

Well, at least they're paying attention. Hopefully they can pull themselves together.

Ten minutes later found Kurt on the couch, while Finn and Blaine went to the garage for the emergency kit. The boys forgot about the increasing chances that they wouldn't have power in a few hours. Finn was taking the time to apologize to Blaine for yelling in the bedroom, while Puck was apologizing to Kurt.

"Dude, I'm sorry for freaking out...we just weren't expecting that announcement yet, and you two were all mellow about it."

"Finn, like I said upstairs, we can't afford to lose our composure right now, or later for that matter. We didn't want to sugarcoat it, but we also didn't not want to tell you."

"Thanks Blaine. You're an awesome guy, dude."

"That means a lot, Finn...thanks. Now, where are the flashlights?"

Meanwhile, Puck was dealing with a sudden passive-aggressive mama bear.

"Come on Princess, I'm sorry for having a hissy fit - both of us are. But really, what did you expect? Did you think we'd be all 'okay, thanks for letting us know' and smile about it?"

Kurt finally looked at Puck - slightly teary. "I knew you wouldn't be ecstatic, but I didn't expect you two to start yelling as soon as I closed the door."

Puck felt horrible when he saw Kurt looking as if he was about to cry. "We're really sorry, but we're just worried. I know we have a good idea about what we're doing, but look at it from our side. We don't want anything to happen to you, either of you," shooting a look from Kurt's face to his belly, "but we were anticipating this happening at the birth center, with Matt there, and your parents nearby. You shouldn't have to rely on some teenagers to deliver your daughter."

Puck bent his head and missed the look of shock on Kurt's face. He still wasn't used to 'sincere' Puck and couldn't help himself. He threw his arms around Puck and cried a little into his shoulder. Puck wasn't sure how to react.

"You don't know what that means to me, Noah. Thank you."

Blaine and Finn walked back into the room to see Kurt crying while tightly hugging a slightly confused Puck.

Finn moved to the couch first. "Hey...is everything alright?"

"Um, yeah...I think we're good, right Kurt?" Kurt nodded into Puck's shoulder before slowly pulling away and wiping his eyes. He turned toward Finn and signaled for another hug. "I'm sorry for being mean."

Finn sent a look over to Puck who shrugged and mouthed, 'just go with it'. "It's okay bro, we're cool. I'm sorry about overreacting...probably could've handled the news better."

Luckily for all involved, the sound of car doors closing could be hear from outside. Finn handed Kurt off to Blaine, and with Puck, made their way to the front door to see if anybody needed help bringing anything inside.

Kurt was about to say something to Blaine, but once again, he felt the need to squeeze Blaine's arm. Blaine heard the hiss of pain before he felt the loss of circulation.

Oh crap.

Blaine looked at Kurt and saw that he had his eyes closed, but was breathing thru the contraction. Blaine focused on keeping Kurt upright. It didn't last long, not even a full minute, but it felt much longer to both of them. Once Blaine felt Kurt loosen his grip, he gently pulled Kurt down to the couch.

"Hey, you alright?"

"Yeah, I think so...how long's it been?" Blaine looked at the time, "About an hour since the one in the shower. Did it feel the same?"

"It didn't hurt as bad, but it was still sharp. It felt...different, too, like it started in my back and wrapped around." Kurt stared at Blaine and let out a laugh. "Are you okay? It was just a contraction."

Blaine shook his head, Just a contraction, he says. "Um, yeah, just peachy. This is happening, isn't it? She's coming?"

"Well, someone did mention earlier that we'd have a baby by tomorrow at the latest."

"Yeah, well, this is one of those times where I would love to be wrong." Blaine focused on massaging Kurt's lower back, and judging by the moans of appreciation he was getting, he was hitting the right spot.

"Are you boys getting it on in here or what?" Kurt and Blaine turned around at the voice.

"No, Santana, we're not. Sorry to disappoint."

Santana let out a smirk at that and kept going in the direction of the kitchen, followed by the rest of the girls carrying the ice and miscellaneous snacks. More voices could be heard coming inside. Finn and Puck were helping Mike get Artie in the house; Sam was helping the Warblers with the food; which left Brittany and Jeff to aim for Kurt and Blaine. They were by far, the most excited for the baby, besides Kurt and Blaine.

"Hey Mama, where's our little girl at?" asked Jeff.

"Yeah, where's the baby dolphin?" asked Brittany.

"She's still right where I left here," Kurt replied pointing at the bump, "although at the rate we're going, it won't be much longer until she's here."

"Well Blaine mentioned that Matt gave her a deadline," Jeff paused, eyeing Kurt and Blaine, "but why do I get the feeling that's not what you meant?"

"Why don't you two make sure everyone's jackets are in the closet first and then get everyone to come in here...we need to tell you all something."

The blondes looked at each other for a second before doing what was asked of them.

Blaine turned to Kurt, "I thought you didn't want to tell anyone yet?"

"I don't think we really have the option anymore, Blaine. While it's not full-blown, active labor yet, it will be. If everyone is expecting it, they'll know when to help or stay out of the way. The only people allowed to cry are me and the baby...and you, because I know you will," he finished with a smirk.

"I won't cry."

"Keep telling yourself that, honey."

It took ten minutes, but eventually everyone made their way into the living room. Everyone found a spot in a chair, on the floor or on the lap of their significant other.

"Okay, Mama, what's going on? Starting a party with a meeting isn't the way I was imagining this day to go."

"Jeffrey, what did I tell you about calling him 'mama'?"

"I dunno, Nicholas. You know I don't listen to you all the time. Besides, Kurt said I could call him that."

"If you two are finished," Kurt sent a look at his mock-sons, "you may as well get used to hearing that. I'll be talking about myself in third person soon enough."

Everyone got quiet for a few seconds before the volume increased tenfold.

"What the hell does that mean?!"

"You're in labor?! Why are we here then?"

"HA! Pay up Thad!"

"DAVID! You said you didn't bet anything!"

"You too guys."

"Artie, not you too."

"Yay! Baby dolphin's coming."

Kurt looked to Blaine and for a moment their thoughts were the same,

Our friends are complete lunatics.

Kurt found Wes within the chaos and made a motion with his hand. The next thing the teens heard was the sound of a gavel hitting the side table.

"I call this insanity to order! Shut up!"

The Warblers got the message before the rest of the group. Slowly but surely, the room quieted down, except for David. "You seriously brought that with you?" Wes just threw a pillow at him.

Blaine eyed the group that was half in shock, "Thanks Wes. Now that we have your attention, I would like to take this opportunity to explain what's going on and how we're gonna take care of this.

"Now, Kurt's had several contractions since last night, however, only the last two have been a real cause for alarm. His water broke in the shower, and at last check he was four centimeters dilated. The reason we're still here is the fact that we still won't see a baby til, at most, much later tonight, or tomorrow. The weather outside is not good, and the news is already reporting power outages to the south of us.

"If the need calls for it, Finn, Puck and I can - and will - deliver the baby; Kurt's in good hands with us. We have Matt on speed dial should we need him. At this stage, going to the hospital is a little pointless. And we have everything here already."

Kurt threw a grateful look at his boyfriend, "And I don't know about you all, but I feel pretty good now with all of you here with me. I'm comfortable here and a homebirth isn't much different to what it would be like with Matt. All I'm asking is for all of you to let me move at my own pace. Trust me, I'll probably become a real bitch within the next few hours; consider this your warning."

That was rewarded with laughs, smirks, and a couple of goldfish expressions.

"In the meantime, we have food, games, and movies, so let's take advantage of the electricity while we have it. So if there aren't any questions...let's party!"

The pizza dilemma ended up not being an issue at all. Since they had such a large order, the pizzeria had no problem with lending the warming bags that were usually reserved for deliveries, for them to use for the party. Actually, food wasn't a problem at all.

The first issue was, unsurprisingly, video games.

"We have to play COD - "

"We played that three days ago when we pulled an all-nighter. So we should play Halo."

"I vote for Mario Kart."

"Seriously? You suck at Mario Kart."

"If the way you handle a weapon in COD is any indication of how well you'd handle one in real life, I'd hate to have you as a hunting partner."

Blaine, Kurt and Jeff were sitting on the couch watching the boys volley back and forth over what game to play first. Blaine had Kurt leaning against him, while Jeff sat on the floor with his head on Kurt's bump. He had made himself the unofficial fetal monitor, which was working out better than expected. While Kurt wasn't denying the fact he was having contractions, he wasn't exactly broadcasting when he had one.

Blaine was rubbing Kurt's back still and watching him doze. "What do you think - should we start taking bets, Jeff? With the way they're going at it, by the time they pick a game, the power's gonna be out."

"Well, Kurt could always play referee and pick a random game for them to play. It's your house and he's the one in labor - that means they'd have to listen to you, Mama."

Without opening his eyes Kurt responded, "Honestly I could care less. Besides, Wes is the one with the gavel. Tell him to take care of it."

"Wes is on Team Mario Kart." Kurt groaned at that.

"Oh for the love of - Jeff do me a favor? Can you get their attention for me?"

"Aye aye." Blaine and Kurt covered their ears. Jeff turned toward the fighting boys and did a quick high-pitched whistle, which effectively got the attention of everyone in the room, including the girls who were watching videos on laptops.

"Thanks Jeff. Okay, since none of you can agree on the same thing, here are your options. One, I pick a game for you and you play it; two, I pick and you don't play it; or three, I let the girls pick a chick flick and make you suffer. What's it gonna be?"

Trent, Wes, Thad, and Mike looked at each other in relief and slight terror. Nick, Beatz, David, Puck, Finn, Sam, and Artie just looked horrified. They seemed to come to a silent consensus and voted at the same time, "You pick."

Kurt was surprised they gave in so quickly. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, which led to Jeff making eye contact with Blaine. He mouthed '23 minutes', which meant that the contractions were starting in increase in frequency. Kurt missed the silent play-by-play and refocused on the eager gamers.

"Either set up Rock Band and make teams, or prepare to watch The Notebook."

Ten minutes later, all of the gamers were set up and playing Rock Band. Trent, Wes, Thad and Mike were Team MK; Finn, Puck, Sam and Artie were Team COD; which left David, Beatz, Nick and Blaine, reluctantly joining in to make the teams even, as Team Halo. The girls were left laughing on the other side of the room, while Jeff and Kurt stayed with the couch.

"See Mama, I told you so."