Elliott watched anxiously, standing in front of the crowd that was surrounding Puck. The rest of them were snapping pictures and giggling madly. He could see the humor, but was a little uncertain of how his uncle would react.

"What the..." Puck blinked open his eyes, feeling way too warm and a little confused. He couldn't figure out why he was unable to move his arms or legs, then glanced down at his body... and found that it was nowhere to be seen. In it's place was a mermaid body, artfully formed out of sand, completely with a bikini top made from shells.

"Very mature guys!" He leaned his head back and glared when he heard snickering behind him. At that, the whole crowd burst out laughing.

"I told them you wouldn't like it, Uncle Puck." Elliott crouched down next to the police officer, looking concerned but trying to hold back a smile. It still was really, really funny to see Uncle Puck with pretend girly parts.

"Oh, I believe you, sport. Sometimes I think you're the only one that likes me." Puck tried to turn his head to level the rest of the group with another glare, but only succeeded in loosening some sand next to his face and getting dusted in the mouth.

All of the adults laughed even harder at this, but Blaine and Carole dove to his side quickly, brushing the sand from his face and started digging him out.

Once Puck was free, Elliott climbed into his lap, brushing away lose grains of sand. The little boy leaned in to whisper.

"Aunt Lauren did the boobies."

Puck threw his head back in laughter, then glanced over at his girlfriend who had moved on to teach Micah and Addy some wrestling moves that they could practice on each other.

"Yeah, I bet she did," he grinned, kissing Elly on top of the head.

"You okay there, Noah?" Kurt called from where he was sprawled out on a blanket under a tree. Blaine had finished helping Puck and moved over to lie next to his husband.

"No thanks to you, princess. You know I could have suffocated, don't you. That sand was pouring into my mouth!"

"Oh relax, you big baby," Kurt grinned, resting his head on Blaine's shoulder. "There are two medical professionals here that could have easily resuscitated you."

Elliott rolled his eyes as his dad and uncle bickered back and forth, and decided to move on.

"Hey, Uncle Finn." He crouched down next to the tall man who was holding a squirming Teegan in one arm and a sleeping Skylar in another.

"Hey, buddy! You having fun today?"

Elliott nodded happily, reaching his arms out for his little cousin.

"You sure, dude?" Finn eyed him warily. "This kid's getting huge and he's heavy."

Elliott nodded once more, still grinning. He loved babies, even when they were being all wiggly like Teegan. Finn passed the one-year-old off to his nephew, grateful to have a free arm for a moment.

Elliott happily played with his cousin for a few minutes, quietly pointing out the ocean and showing the tiny boy how to build a sandcastle. Unfortunately, Teegan was currently at the stage where he was mostly interested in smashing things. Two destroyed sandcastles later, Elliott handed handed the baby back over to Finn with a good-natured shrug. His uncle ruffled his hair and took the boy back with a smile.

Elliott walked along the beach then, observing everyone else in characteristic stoicism. Aunt Rachel, Aunt Marie and Hailey were lying out on beach chairs, soaking up the sun. Hailey would occasionally peak over the top of her sunglasses to check on what her mother was doing. Whenever Rachel would prop up a leg, or spread on some fresh lotion, Hailey would do the same. Elliott smiled at them quietly. Aunt Rachel was so nice and pretty, even if she was a little bit crazy. If he were a girl, he'd want to be just like her too.

He picked up his pace then as he passed by Aunt Lauren teaching Addy and Micah her signature wrestling moves. That stuff made him nervous. If he wasn't careful, Addy would be trying to rope him in to trying something with her. He loved his sister dearly, but she could be a little too enthusiastic sometimes. He caught Aunt Lauren's eye as he snuck past. She winked at him and shot him a smile, which he returned brightly. He was really happy that Uncle Puck was dating her. She always talked to him like a grown-up and called him "that awesome, quiet kid."

"Come on, El!"

The boy looked up to see Uncle Wes jogging toward him, holding out a hand.

"Let's get in the water, buddy!"

Elliott looked at him skeptically. He loved being on the beach, but mostly for the sunshine. The combination of the sand and water held absolutely no appeal for him. Wes grinned at him, knowing exactly what was going on in the boy's head.

"Come on," he swung Elliott up and settled him on his shoulders. "Live a little kid. You're too cautious, like your old man. I won't get you too wet." Elliott doubted his Uncle Wes' ability to reign himself in that much. He knew the man too well.

He turned to the lake and watched Elise laughing and playing in the water with her daddies as Uncle Wes strode forward. He smiled a little, thinking that maybe getting wet wouldn't be so bad after all... but if he had a choice, he'd stay right where he was.

"All right, sweetie," Jeff called out excitedly. "You can do it! Oh my gosh, Nick! Don't let go of her!"

Elise was splashing wildly as she doggy paddled her way to Jeff. Nick was following close behind, with hands at the ready, in case she should start sinking. The lawyer rolled his eyes.

"I'm right here, babe. She's fine."

"Hold on to her! Just in case!"

"Don't hold me, papa!" Elise called as she sputtered breathlessly. Nick had started to grasp her waist and shot a triumphant look toward his husband at her words.

Elliott giggled at their interactions and kicked his feet happily against Wes' chest.

"What do you think, El? Do you wanna join Elise in a swimming lesson?" Wes cocked his head so that he could peek up at the boy. Elliott shook his head.

"I already know how. Daddies taught me yesterday."

Wes smirked. "Let me guess, Daddy Kurt was freaking out like Uncle Jeff, huh?" Elliot smiled and nodded.

"Daddy Blaine had to keep telling him to breathe."

Wes laughed so hard then that he almost dropped Elliott backward into the water. Elliott's eyes widened in panic and he wrapped both arms and legs around Wes' face.

"Umph, how 'bout I take you back to the beach?" Wes spoke in a strangled voice as he tried to pry Elliott from his face and neck.

"Yes please," Elliott said in a stiff voice, determined to not loosen his hold until Uncle Wes followed through.

Once he was firmly deposited on the beach, he took off toward his grandparents while Wes flung himself back into the water, face first.

"Hey, sweetie," his grandma smiled as he climbed up into his grandpa's lap. Grandpa Burt tugged him close for a hug, before settling the boy on his knee.

"When was the last time you put on your sunscreen, Elliott?" Grandma Carole looked at him in concern. "You look pink." She reached out a lotion covered hand and quickly smeared some on his cheeks and shoulders. Burt grinned at him and winked as the boy let out a long-suffering sigh. He eyed his grandpa and shrugged as if to say, 'This is just what grandmas do, I guess.'

Burt laughed and patted him on the back as he jumped down and trotted away before his grandma could smear him again. He ran along the beach for a moment until he was by himself, then slowed to a leisurely pace. He kicked the sand lightly with his toes and squinted bright blue eyes up at the shining sun, before sighing in contentment.

Elliott really was happy. For him, this was life at it's best. Everyone he loved was close by, the sun was shining down on him and he was able to take it all in silently. Silent was the key word here. Elliott loved to be silent. It gave him more time to think, and he really loved to think. Most people didn't understand that about him. All his life, people had pushed and pushed for him to speak. He never really got what all the hubbub was about. When he had something important to say, he would say it. Until then, he kept his mouth shut. It seemed like the smart thing, he thought, as he watched a bird fly high in the sky and disappear out toward the water. The more time he took before speaking, the less likely he was to say something he'd feel bad about later. He didn't understand why more people didn't try it.

A smile quickly brightened his face when he thought of the two people in his life who had always seemed to understand. His daddies. Neither pushed or got frustrated when he was his typical quiet self. In fact, it seemed like they just loved him even more when he was true to character.

Thinking of his dads made him wonder where they were. He peeked over curiously to the blanket that they had previously occupied, but upon finding it empty, he decided to seek them out. He glanced around. They weren't on the beach. He looked up at the deck on the back of the house. They weren't there either. Maybe they went inside.

He took his hands out of his pockets and let them swing at his sides as he trotted toward the house. He shook the sand from his feet before he stepped into the living room. A smile came across his face when he heard their voices, and he headed in that direction.

"You remember this table don't you?" Daddy Blaine whispered.

"Of course. How could I forget?" Daddy said in a soft voice.

Uh-oh.

Elliott stopped short. He knew that tone of voice. Daddy always talked like that when they were about to get all smoochy and lock the door of their room. They made sure to do that all the time now, ever since that scary day when he and Addy had caught them playing cops and robbers. He shuddered to himself at the memory. He believed his daddies when they said those things meant that they loved each other, but it just looked gross to him. Daddy said one day he'd want to do those things with the person he loved, and that when that happened, he'd understand. Elliott could remember that conversation clearly.

"It just seems yucky."

"That's okay. It should seem yucky right now. When you're older though, things will change and you'll understand."

"What if I don't want to understand?"

Silence as Kurt looked at him steadily. "Well, that's up to you, monster. You don't have to do anything like that unless you want to. But please stop worrying about it. It'll be a long time before you're even ready to THINK of doing those things."

Elliott nodded, before his eyes widened with a sudden realization. "Who am I supposed to do those things with? A boy or a girl?"

Kurt smiled then.

"That, darling, is something that no one call tell you..." he tapped his son lightly on the nose, "but you. Whenever you have questions or want to talk about it though, daddy and I will be here for you."

Elliott nodded agreeably and gave his father a quick hug before moving away.

"Elly?"

The boy turned back to his father with questioning eyes.

"Whichever way? You're prefect. Okay?"

Elliott smiled once more and blew his father a kiss, before dashing off to find Daddy Blaine. He wanted to play some football.

Now the five-year-old stood there uncertainly. He knew to never just walk in on his daddies while they were in their bedroom, but they weren't in their bedroom. They were in the dining room. He poked his head around the corner so that just an eye was showing.

Daddy was sitting on the table with his legs wrapped around Daddy Blaine's waist. They were making all sorts of weird sounds and Daddy Blaine had his hand up Daddy's shirt.

Elliott's face turned red and he quickly split from the hallway. Dining room or not, he didn't feel like interrupting that. It looked like more gross stuff. He reminded himself to eat on the other table at dinner that night.

He shrugged, thinking he'd see his fathers when they stopped kissing, and ran back out into the sunshine.

"Alright! Time for all the rugrats to be in bed!"

Every child groaned at Grandpa Burt's words, but quickly obeyed. Teegan and Skylar were already asleep in Aunt Rachel and Aunt Marie's arms, and the two women went to lay them down. Micah, Elise, Hailey, Addy and Elly all lined up to kiss every parent, aunt, uncle and grandparent, before running up the stair to climb into their bunkbeds.

Elliott was the last to climb the stairs, and Kurt caught him by the hand before he could dash behind the others. Elliott knew what his father was going to say before he even spoke. Daddy always had the same look when he asked the same question. While his father never once pushed him to be more vocal, he always made sure to give his son the opportunity. Every once in a while, he would pull Elliott aside and question him with loving concern.

"How are you doing, kiddo?"

Elliott grinned and threw his arms around his daddy's neck, kissing him on the cheek.

Kurt smiled and held his son close.

"I love you too, El."

Elliott turned to scramble up the stairs behind his cousins, happy in the knowledge that his father knew him so well, and loved him.

Life was good.