Family Dinner
Title: Family Dinner
Rating: G
Pairing: Kurt/Blaine
Summary: Kurt had been gone to New York for twelve days - twelve days, eight hours, and fifteen minutes, if he was being precise, and with Kurt he always was - when Blaine got the call from Kurt's home number.
Word Count: 2213
Author's Note: Fourth written but first chronologically in the fluffiest little verse I ever did write. This is the story I wrote in celebration when I successfully completed NaNoWriMo. Because writing to celebrate too much writing is the only logical thing to do.
Kurt had been gone to New York for twelve days - twelve days, eight hours, and fifteen minutes, if he was being precise, and with Kurt he always was - when Blaine got the call from Kurt’s home number. Blaine panicked for a minute, a thousand possible terrible reasons for the call running through his head, before he got his wits about him and answered.
“Hello?”
“Son,” Burt Hummel’s voice was slow and calm, too calm. Blaine started to panic again.
“Is everything ok, Mr. Hu…Burt?” Blaine had been trying to get used to calling him Burt, but it was still intimidating, even though Burt had told him to do so way back at Kurt’s graduation in June. It had been a moment, but still. This was his boyfriend’s father.
“Fine, kid. Except…” Burt paused, and Blaine’s heart plummeted. “Carole and I were wondering why your chair was empty at dinner last Friday night.”
“I’m sorry?” Blaine was really, really confused. “Kurt was already gone last Friday.”
“Trust me, I’m aware.” Burt chuckled slightly, sounding sad. “But that’s no excuse for you to miss dinner, son. That’s the first time you’ve missed in almost a year. So tomorrow night I expect your butt in that chair at 6:30 sharp. You hear me?”
“Yes, sir,” Blaine said dazedly.
“Hang on, Blaine.” The sound was muffled on Burt’s end, but it seemed like he was talking to someone. “Actually, scratch that. You’d better come early. Carole says she wants to try that recipe your mother gave her at the graduation party. She wants your help.”
“Chicken Marsala? That’s my favorite.”
“So I hear. Anyway, Carole wants to make sure she gets it right, so why don’t you come around 5:30? If you set the table, I’ll even let you out of dish duty.”
“Ok,” Blaine said, still trying to process the conversation.
“Great. Well, I’ll let you get back to your homework. See you tomorrow.”
“See you then.”
“Goodnight.” Burt ended the call, and Blaine sat down on the end of his bed. He had no idea what had just happened.
***
At 5:30 the next night, Blaine rang the bell at the Hudson-Hummel house. Carole threw the door open a moment later, smiling.
“Blaine, sweetheart, since when do you ring the bell? Get in here and help me. I’m not sure I’m doing it right.”
“I’m sure you’re doing great, Carole.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek as he walked past her into the kitchen that was almost more familiar to him than his own.
By the time Burt and Finn got home half an hour later, Blaine was elbow-deep in salad preparations, telling Carole a story about Glee that had her bursting into peals of laughter. Finn called hello on his way up to the shower, and Burt wandered into the kitchen, filling up a glass of water and trying to get a taste of the sauce before Carole shooed him out of the room. Blaine moved on to setting the table, grabbing silverware and placemats like he always did. He had to make a second trip back for the plates, which he wasn’t used to. That had always been Kurt’s job.
“I know you miss him, honey. We all do,” Carole said, and Blaine realized he was standing in the middle of the kitchen, staring down at a stack of plates. He smiled weakly at her before heading back into the dining room.
Blaine lingered over each place setting, needing a moment before he went back into the kitchen. He knew the people in this house were some of the few who could come close to understanding how he felt. They were missing a family member, and he was missing his heart. He stopped behind Kurt’s usual chair, realizing with a jolt that he’d set a place for him even though he wouldn’t be here. He collected the extra plate and silverware, biting hard at his lip to keep back the sob that wanted to escape. He missed Kurt so much. He’d known it would be bad, but this was torture.
“The first week he was gone, I kept getting up early to make that yogurt thing he likes for breakfast,” Carole said when he came back into the kitchen, extra place setting in hand. “I made Burt eat it. He wasn’t happy about it, but I think he understood.”
“Yeah,” Blaine said, ducking his head into the fridge to get the salad dressings.
“It gets easier. When Finn’s dad went into the service, I never thought I’d make it through his first tour, but you manage. He’ll be back before you know it - Thanksgiving, Christmas, Spring Break.” She smiled at him again, and he marveled at the way this woman, who had lost her first husband in one of the worst ways possible, could be the one comforting him.
“It’s just harder than I expected,” Blaine said, and Carole nodded. “Thanks for having me over. It helps.”
“Of course, sweetheart. You’re family. You know that.” Carole came over to wrap him up in a motherly hug, and Blaine let himself sag into her for a minute, needing the comfort. “I expect you to be here as often as you can this year, ok? And right now, I expect you to get that salad on the table, and then I expect you to lie to me if this dinner isn’t as good as your mother’s.”
“I’m sure I won’t have to lie, Carole,” Blaine said loyally.
“And there’s the charming young man we all know and love,” she replied, winking.
Blaine was saved from trying to find an appropriate reply when Finn clattered down the stairs, his laptop held gingerly in front of him.
“Yes! I told you I could do it!” Finn said, seemingly to his computer.
“Yes, Finn, you’re a technological genius,” came a dry voice from the laptop’s speakers. “Now put the laptop down before all your galumphing makes me any more nauseated.”
Blaine’s eyes lit up at the familiar voice, and he was grinning by the time Finn had put the computer down on the table and he could see Kurt’s face on the screen.
“Blaine! There you are. I missed you at dinner last week.” Even pixilated and a little fuzzy, Kurt’s eyes were soft and his smile so, so dear.
“Hi, baby,” Blaine said, not even caring that Finn and Carole heard the endearment. “Is this a nightly thing? Skype dinner dates? Because I could get behind that.”
“Sadly, no. Just Fridays so far. I’m glad you’re there tonight.”
“Me too,” Blaine said, sounding so sappy that he could have sworn he heard Finn’s eyes roll behind him.
Burt came back down then, and the whole family settled into their seats, Finn’s laptop propped at Kurt’s place. Blaine had never been more grateful that they always sat across from one another. He couldn’t hook his foot around one of Kurt’s ankles like he normally would, but he could see every expression and hear every word that came out of Kurt’s mouth.
At the end of the meal, which was delicious, Blaine lingered at the table while Finn and Burt said their goodbyes to Kurt and then took the dishes back to the kitchen. Carole said goodnight as well, dropping a kiss on the top of Blaine’s head before heading up to bed. She had an early shift the next morning.
“You know,” Blaine said, leaning one elbow on the table so he could rest his cheek on his hand, “you could have warned me that your dad was going to call me about coming to dinner.”
“What fun would that have been?” Kurt said, grinning. “Besides, I didn’t know until he called me last night and said something about how he probably frightened you.”
“I suppose you’re off the hook, then. It was only twenty seconds of utter terror, followed by a day of confusion.”
“What’s confusing about them wanting you there? You’re always there.”
“Not without you,” Blaine said, trying and failing to sound like he wasn’t completely besotted and missing his boyfriend.
“Oh, honey. I miss you too,” Kurt said, giving voice to what Blaine didn’t say, just like he always did. “New York is great, but…well, we’ve had that conversation. Nothing we can do about it but talk and visit and be a little sad.”
“Are you sure you can’t come home for Fall Break?” Blaine asked, though he already knew the answer. They’d talked about it nonstop for the last week.
“I wish I could. Thanksgiving’s not so far off, though. And after that I’ll be home for a month!”
“I’m counting the days.”
“Me too.” Kurt smiled and reached out, and Blaine knew he was touching the screen where he could see Blaine’s face, just like Blaine did sometimes when he skyped with Kurt from home.
“I should probably go, baby. Sounds like your dad and Finn are done with the dishes, so I should give Finn his computer back.”
“But not his brother?” Kurt asked, smiling.
“Oh, no. You I’m keeping.” Blaine blew him a kiss, which made Kurt’s smile turn a little silly. “I’ll call you tonight.”
“How’s 10:30? I should get to bed at a decent hour; Rachel’s planning to drag me to some artsy something tomorrow, and you know she thinks a day is wasted if it doesn’t begin by 8.”
“Poor baby,” Blaine murmured sympathetically. “10:30 sounds great.”
“I love you,” Kurt said, blowing a kiss of his own.
“Love you too,” Blaine said, and then he ended the call before it could devolve into one of those ‘You hang up. No, you hang up.’ farces. They were pretty gross and adorable as a couple, but that was just unnecessary.
“Is Kurt off for some fancy New York evening?” Burt asked, wandering back in from the kitchen.
“I think he was planning to start the paper for his Modern Theater class, actually. It’s not due until next Thursday, but…” Blaine shrugged.
“That’s my kid - the wild party animal,” Burt said affectionately. Blaine laughed. “So the game’s on. The Indians are looking pretty rough, but maybe things’ll turn around. It’s only the third inning.”
“Anything can happen,” Blaine said as he followed Burt into the living room. Finn was already stretched out at one end of the couch, so Blaine took the other end. The only thing missing was Kurt sitting between them, making sarcastic comments about everything baseball-related while reading a magazine. He had always been an impressive multitasker.
“So listen,” Burt said, turning to Blaine during the next commercial break. “The three of us are thinking of driving out to New York next month during Kurt’s fall break. We know he can’t get away, but we figured if we showed up there, he’d have to make at least a little time for us.”
“That sounds nice,” Blaine said.
“We thought you might want to come along, get in some college visits and interviews, that sort of thing.”
“Really?” Blaine said, and Finn laughed.
“Of course, kid. Kurt would never forgive us if we drove all that way and left you here,” Burt said. “We thought we’d leave first thing Friday morning - last time I talked to Will, he said you all have some sort of teacher workday - so we’ll be in New York by the time Kurt gets out of class. Then we’ll come back on Tuesday, if you think you can miss two days of school.”
“I’ll make it work,” Blaine said fervently. For a long weekend in New York with Kurt, he’d move mountains.
“Awesome, dude!” Finn said. “It’ll be nice to have someone to talk to. That drive is long.”
“What are your mother and I - chopped liver?” Burt asked, smiling at his step-son.
“Oh, you know what I mean. Someone my own age,” Finn said.
“It’ll be great,” Blaine said. His cheeks were beginning to hurt from smiling.
“Well, once you get it cleared with your parents, I figured you’d want to tell Kurt yourself,” Burt said.
“Yes, I…yes. I’ll do that. Thank you,” Blaine said. He was asking his parents first thing tomorrow morning. Then he could tell Kurt after he got back from his day with Rachel. It would be perfect.
“You’re welcome. It’ll be nice to have you along, and it’ll make my kid really happy, so it’s a win-win,” Burt said, before turning back to the game.
Blaine settled back into the couch, his mind ablaze with all the possibilities and plans they’d have to make. He couldn’t wait to be in New York with Kurt. It wouldn’t be permanent, not yet, but it would be a start. In the meantime, he had Kurt’s family, who were the most amazing people on earth. And maybe one day, if he were really, really lucky, he’d be able to have both Kurt and his family, for real, forever.
The thought was enough to keep him smiling even when the Indians blew a 7-3 lead with two outs in the bottom of the 9th. Maybe he couldn’t have everything, like a team that remembered how to play baseball all the way through September, but he had the important things. And in a few weeks, he’d have Kurt back in his arms.
Rating: G
Pairing: Kurt/Blaine
Summary: Kurt had been gone to New York for twelve days - twelve days, eight hours, and fifteen minutes, if he was being precise, and with Kurt he always was - when Blaine got the call from Kurt's home number.
Word Count: 2213
Author's Note: Fourth written but first chronologically in the fluffiest little verse I ever did write. This is the story I wrote in celebration when I successfully completed NaNoWriMo. Because writing to celebrate too much writing is the only logical thing to do.
Kurt had been gone to New York for twelve days - twelve days, eight hours, and fifteen minutes, if he was being precise, and with Kurt he always was - when Blaine got the call from Kurt’s home number. Blaine panicked for a minute, a thousand possible terrible reasons for the call running through his head, before he got his wits about him and answered.
“Hello?”
“Son,” Burt Hummel’s voice was slow and calm, too calm. Blaine started to panic again.
“Is everything ok, Mr. Hu…Burt?” Blaine had been trying to get used to calling him Burt, but it was still intimidating, even though Burt had told him to do so way back at Kurt’s graduation in June. It had been a moment, but still. This was his boyfriend’s father.
“Fine, kid. Except…” Burt paused, and Blaine’s heart plummeted. “Carole and I were wondering why your chair was empty at dinner last Friday night.”
“I’m sorry?” Blaine was really, really confused. “Kurt was already gone last Friday.”
“Trust me, I’m aware.” Burt chuckled slightly, sounding sad. “But that’s no excuse for you to miss dinner, son. That’s the first time you’ve missed in almost a year. So tomorrow night I expect your butt in that chair at 6:30 sharp. You hear me?”
“Yes, sir,” Blaine said dazedly.
“Hang on, Blaine.” The sound was muffled on Burt’s end, but it seemed like he was talking to someone. “Actually, scratch that. You’d better come early. Carole says she wants to try that recipe your mother gave her at the graduation party. She wants your help.”
“Chicken Marsala? That’s my favorite.”
“So I hear. Anyway, Carole wants to make sure she gets it right, so why don’t you come around 5:30? If you set the table, I’ll even let you out of dish duty.”
“Ok,” Blaine said, still trying to process the conversation.
“Great. Well, I’ll let you get back to your homework. See you tomorrow.”
“See you then.”
“Goodnight.” Burt ended the call, and Blaine sat down on the end of his bed. He had no idea what had just happened.
***
At 5:30 the next night, Blaine rang the bell at the Hudson-Hummel house. Carole threw the door open a moment later, smiling.
“Blaine, sweetheart, since when do you ring the bell? Get in here and help me. I’m not sure I’m doing it right.”
“I’m sure you’re doing great, Carole.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek as he walked past her into the kitchen that was almost more familiar to him than his own.
By the time Burt and Finn got home half an hour later, Blaine was elbow-deep in salad preparations, telling Carole a story about Glee that had her bursting into peals of laughter. Finn called hello on his way up to the shower, and Burt wandered into the kitchen, filling up a glass of water and trying to get a taste of the sauce before Carole shooed him out of the room. Blaine moved on to setting the table, grabbing silverware and placemats like he always did. He had to make a second trip back for the plates, which he wasn’t used to. That had always been Kurt’s job.
“I know you miss him, honey. We all do,” Carole said, and Blaine realized he was standing in the middle of the kitchen, staring down at a stack of plates. He smiled weakly at her before heading back into the dining room.
Blaine lingered over each place setting, needing a moment before he went back into the kitchen. He knew the people in this house were some of the few who could come close to understanding how he felt. They were missing a family member, and he was missing his heart. He stopped behind Kurt’s usual chair, realizing with a jolt that he’d set a place for him even though he wouldn’t be here. He collected the extra plate and silverware, biting hard at his lip to keep back the sob that wanted to escape. He missed Kurt so much. He’d known it would be bad, but this was torture.
“The first week he was gone, I kept getting up early to make that yogurt thing he likes for breakfast,” Carole said when he came back into the kitchen, extra place setting in hand. “I made Burt eat it. He wasn’t happy about it, but I think he understood.”
“Yeah,” Blaine said, ducking his head into the fridge to get the salad dressings.
“It gets easier. When Finn’s dad went into the service, I never thought I’d make it through his first tour, but you manage. He’ll be back before you know it - Thanksgiving, Christmas, Spring Break.” She smiled at him again, and he marveled at the way this woman, who had lost her first husband in one of the worst ways possible, could be the one comforting him.
“It’s just harder than I expected,” Blaine said, and Carole nodded. “Thanks for having me over. It helps.”
“Of course, sweetheart. You’re family. You know that.” Carole came over to wrap him up in a motherly hug, and Blaine let himself sag into her for a minute, needing the comfort. “I expect you to be here as often as you can this year, ok? And right now, I expect you to get that salad on the table, and then I expect you to lie to me if this dinner isn’t as good as your mother’s.”
“I’m sure I won’t have to lie, Carole,” Blaine said loyally.
“And there’s the charming young man we all know and love,” she replied, winking.
Blaine was saved from trying to find an appropriate reply when Finn clattered down the stairs, his laptop held gingerly in front of him.
“Yes! I told you I could do it!” Finn said, seemingly to his computer.
“Yes, Finn, you’re a technological genius,” came a dry voice from the laptop’s speakers. “Now put the laptop down before all your galumphing makes me any more nauseated.”
Blaine’s eyes lit up at the familiar voice, and he was grinning by the time Finn had put the computer down on the table and he could see Kurt’s face on the screen.
“Blaine! There you are. I missed you at dinner last week.” Even pixilated and a little fuzzy, Kurt’s eyes were soft and his smile so, so dear.
“Hi, baby,” Blaine said, not even caring that Finn and Carole heard the endearment. “Is this a nightly thing? Skype dinner dates? Because I could get behind that.”
“Sadly, no. Just Fridays so far. I’m glad you’re there tonight.”
“Me too,” Blaine said, sounding so sappy that he could have sworn he heard Finn’s eyes roll behind him.
Burt came back down then, and the whole family settled into their seats, Finn’s laptop propped at Kurt’s place. Blaine had never been more grateful that they always sat across from one another. He couldn’t hook his foot around one of Kurt’s ankles like he normally would, but he could see every expression and hear every word that came out of Kurt’s mouth.
At the end of the meal, which was delicious, Blaine lingered at the table while Finn and Burt said their goodbyes to Kurt and then took the dishes back to the kitchen. Carole said goodnight as well, dropping a kiss on the top of Blaine’s head before heading up to bed. She had an early shift the next morning.
“You know,” Blaine said, leaning one elbow on the table so he could rest his cheek on his hand, “you could have warned me that your dad was going to call me about coming to dinner.”
“What fun would that have been?” Kurt said, grinning. “Besides, I didn’t know until he called me last night and said something about how he probably frightened you.”
“I suppose you’re off the hook, then. It was only twenty seconds of utter terror, followed by a day of confusion.”
“What’s confusing about them wanting you there? You’re always there.”
“Not without you,” Blaine said, trying and failing to sound like he wasn’t completely besotted and missing his boyfriend.
“Oh, honey. I miss you too,” Kurt said, giving voice to what Blaine didn’t say, just like he always did. “New York is great, but…well, we’ve had that conversation. Nothing we can do about it but talk and visit and be a little sad.”
“Are you sure you can’t come home for Fall Break?” Blaine asked, though he already knew the answer. They’d talked about it nonstop for the last week.
“I wish I could. Thanksgiving’s not so far off, though. And after that I’ll be home for a month!”
“I’m counting the days.”
“Me too.” Kurt smiled and reached out, and Blaine knew he was touching the screen where he could see Blaine’s face, just like Blaine did sometimes when he skyped with Kurt from home.
“I should probably go, baby. Sounds like your dad and Finn are done with the dishes, so I should give Finn his computer back.”
“But not his brother?” Kurt asked, smiling.
“Oh, no. You I’m keeping.” Blaine blew him a kiss, which made Kurt’s smile turn a little silly. “I’ll call you tonight.”
“How’s 10:30? I should get to bed at a decent hour; Rachel’s planning to drag me to some artsy something tomorrow, and you know she thinks a day is wasted if it doesn’t begin by 8.”
“Poor baby,” Blaine murmured sympathetically. “10:30 sounds great.”
“I love you,” Kurt said, blowing a kiss of his own.
“Love you too,” Blaine said, and then he ended the call before it could devolve into one of those ‘You hang up. No, you hang up.’ farces. They were pretty gross and adorable as a couple, but that was just unnecessary.
“Is Kurt off for some fancy New York evening?” Burt asked, wandering back in from the kitchen.
“I think he was planning to start the paper for his Modern Theater class, actually. It’s not due until next Thursday, but…” Blaine shrugged.
“That’s my kid - the wild party animal,” Burt said affectionately. Blaine laughed. “So the game’s on. The Indians are looking pretty rough, but maybe things’ll turn around. It’s only the third inning.”
“Anything can happen,” Blaine said as he followed Burt into the living room. Finn was already stretched out at one end of the couch, so Blaine took the other end. The only thing missing was Kurt sitting between them, making sarcastic comments about everything baseball-related while reading a magazine. He had always been an impressive multitasker.
“So listen,” Burt said, turning to Blaine during the next commercial break. “The three of us are thinking of driving out to New York next month during Kurt’s fall break. We know he can’t get away, but we figured if we showed up there, he’d have to make at least a little time for us.”
“That sounds nice,” Blaine said.
“We thought you might want to come along, get in some college visits and interviews, that sort of thing.”
“Really?” Blaine said, and Finn laughed.
“Of course, kid. Kurt would never forgive us if we drove all that way and left you here,” Burt said. “We thought we’d leave first thing Friday morning - last time I talked to Will, he said you all have some sort of teacher workday - so we’ll be in New York by the time Kurt gets out of class. Then we’ll come back on Tuesday, if you think you can miss two days of school.”
“I’ll make it work,” Blaine said fervently. For a long weekend in New York with Kurt, he’d move mountains.
“Awesome, dude!” Finn said. “It’ll be nice to have someone to talk to. That drive is long.”
“What are your mother and I - chopped liver?” Burt asked, smiling at his step-son.
“Oh, you know what I mean. Someone my own age,” Finn said.
“It’ll be great,” Blaine said. His cheeks were beginning to hurt from smiling.
“Well, once you get it cleared with your parents, I figured you’d want to tell Kurt yourself,” Burt said.
“Yes, I…yes. I’ll do that. Thank you,” Blaine said. He was asking his parents first thing tomorrow morning. Then he could tell Kurt after he got back from his day with Rachel. It would be perfect.
“You’re welcome. It’ll be nice to have you along, and it’ll make my kid really happy, so it’s a win-win,” Burt said, before turning back to the game.
Blaine settled back into the couch, his mind ablaze with all the possibilities and plans they’d have to make. He couldn’t wait to be in New York with Kurt. It wouldn’t be permanent, not yet, but it would be a start. In the meantime, he had Kurt’s family, who were the most amazing people on earth. And maybe one day, if he were really, really lucky, he’d be able to have both Kurt and his family, for real, forever.
The thought was enough to keep him smiling even when the Indians blew a 7-3 lead with two outs in the bottom of the 9th. Maybe he couldn’t have everything, like a team that remembered how to play baseball all the way through September, but he had the important things. And in a few weeks, he’d have Kurt back in his arms.