Kurt let out a breath of relief after they had gotten off the aeroplane and picked up their bags from the baggage claim. He was holding Joey in his arms while Blaine was pushing a trolley full of their luggage. It had been Joey and Kurt's first time flying because they always drove between New York and Ohio and they'd been worried that Joey would play up the whole way to LA. Luckily he had slept the whole five hours there and was only just waking up now.

They were met by an enthusiastic Cooper who was excited to finally have his nephew visiting LA. Joey was two years old and he honestly felt like he'd missed out on so much of his nephew's life. He did try to visit New York occasionally and he always went back to Ohio when there was a family gathering at the Hudson-Hummels. None of that could beat spending more time with him.

“Hey guys! Good flight?” Cooper asked.

“Not too bad.” Kurt replied as Joey nuzzled his face into the crook of his neck, still between being awake and asleep.

“How'd the little guy take it?”

They all started walking towards the parking lot. “Better than we hoped. He just slept. If only it were that easy to get him off to sleep at home.” Blaine laughed.

They got to the car and Cooper helped Blaine put all their luggage in the back while Kurt got a very sleepy Joey settled into his car seat. Blaine and Cooper then got in the front while Kurt stayed in the back with Joey.

Halfway to Cooper's, where they would be staying for the two weeks they were there, Joey woke up and wiped his eyes with his fists. He looked around confused having no clue where they were.

“Papa, papa, papa.” Joey babbled.

Blaine turned in his seat. “What's the matter little man?”

“Hun-ge. Food pwease.” Joey gave Blaine a cheeky grin.

Kurt reached into his bag and got out a small tub of dry cereal and held out the pot to Joey. Joey beamed and started taking the cereal, munching each piece before he took another.

“What do we say Joey?” Kurt said.

“Ta.”

Kurt gave him a peck on his head. “Good boy.”

The rest of the drive was filled with conversation, mostly catching Cooper up on the milestones that he was missing as Joey grew. The centre of the conversation was happily eating his snack and staring out of the window.

XXXX

They had dropped of their bags at Cooper's and then drove straight to Adele's where most of the family were once again gathered. They sat out in the garden, the sun shining down on them. Kurt fussing making sure that Joey kept his hat on for some protection from the sun. Joey was content to run around the garden, playing with a ball.

"Oop! Oop! Ball with me?” Joey shouted.

“What's he saying?” Connor asked.

Blaine laughed, knowing how difficult it was to understand Joey sometimes. “He wants Cooper to play with the ball with him. He hasn't quite got his name down yet.”

Cooper and Joey started rolling the ball back and forth between each other. It was easy to see that Cooper was loving spending time with Joey and how happy it made him that Joey knew who he was and wanted his attention.

It was hard for their families. All of them adored Joey and they hardly ever got to see him and his parents because of school and work commitments and the fact that they lived in different states. The first few years went by so quickly, young children really were like sponges absorbing knowledge readily.

“How do you think he will like the beach tomorrow?” Connor asked.

“I'm sure he'll love it. He likes discovering new things and he's never been to a beach before. As long as he doesn't try to eat any of the sand. He hates it when he gets told he can't have something. He gets a little bit stroppy.” Blaine laughed.

“I've made sure to bring plenty of sun cream for him. I do not want him burning. If we just reapply it every few hours then that should be safe.” Kurt commented.

“Yes boss.” Cooper gave a mock salute which earned him a glare from Kurt who himself had never been to LA and planned on slathering himself with sun cream. Just in case.

XXXX

Blaine couldn't count how many times he had had to pry a handful of sand off of Joey before he decided to put it into his mouth. He could tell that Joey was not impressed but he hadn't started whinging yet, probably because there were so many new things to stimulate him. They had started building sandcastles together, Blaine and Kurt encouraging Joey to build rather than punch a fist into the side of the castle. He wasn't quite getting the right idea.

Cooper and Connor sidled up to the trio who were sat underneath a parasol and they grabbed Joey in order to introduce him to the sea. Kurt watched them from where they were sat with a worried glance. If it wasn't for Blaine sitting with him he would have probably been up and supervising the boys while they had Joey near water.

Cooper held Joey as they slowly introduced him to the water. He squealed adorably when the water first touched his toes, probably because he wasn't used to the cold water. It certainly wasn't as warm as the water in the local swimming pool that they went to. They slowly went out a bit further, Cooper dipping Joey into the water and then lifting him out making the little boy giggle.

Kurt made sure to keep an eye on them, worried about all the dangers of the sea. Realistically he knew that Cooper and Conner would never let anything happen to Joey but he still worried. There were accidents on the beach all the time. Being a father had definitely turned Kurt into a ‘worry-wart'. He never used to have so much fear about things. He was the boy that had worn a ‘Likes Boys' t-shirt in Ohio of all places. Blaine was a bit more relaxed about things though he could sometimes be just as bad as Kurt. They had a dynamic where if one of them was worried about something the other would have to reassure them while at the same time reassuring any worries that they had about the certain thing too. It was a good dynamic and it worked for them. Blaine was being the more relaxed one in this situation. He remembered from his childhood spending time at the beach with Cooper. If at twelve years old, Cooper could keep him safe then he trusted at thirty-two he'd be able to keep his nephew safe. After about twenty minutes of them playing in the sea it was clear that Joey was getting tired. He was starting to wriggle and fidget in Cooper's arms and it wouldn't be long before he would start whining. After the whining would come full blown tears before he tired himself out and fell asleep.

Blaine got up and went to get Joey off of Cooper and Conner. “Hey guys. The little guy is getting a bit tired now so we better take him back and get him down for a nap. He's not used to so much stuff going on in one day. I can take him if you guys are gonna be here longer.”

Cooper passed Joey over to his papa. “We'll stay for a little bit more. You going to be alright getting back?”

“We'll be fine. We've got the pushchair and the walk back will probably send him straight to sleep. We'll see you guys later.”

XXXX

It was a few hours before Cooper and Conner got back and Joey was awake again after his nap and ready to play. He had several toy cars which he was racing around the room, using people's feet as obstacles.

Cooper watched the little guy with a smile. He really loved his little nephew. He had never thought that he really liked children that much, they just weren't that interesting for him but Joey seemed to be the exception. He wanted what his little brother had. Someone that loved him and a family. No more fooling around or one night stands. It was about time that he started to get serious. He was thirty-two and had never had a real, serious relationship. He was going to find the woman of his dreams and finally settle down.

Cooper stopped having his epiphany and knelt down to play with Joey, a grin on his face and a dream for the, hopefully, very near future.