GLEE FIC: Identity (6/8)
Title: Identity, part 6
Fandom: Glee
Summary: In the small sexist village, Kurt Hummel finds life difficult. He’s a man but constantly treated as a woman because of his not-straightforward gender. He wants to leave the village but Blaine Anderson wants him as a wife. Can they compromise their dreams without a lot of heartbreak?
Pairings/Characters: Kurt/Blaine, Burt/Elizabeth, Matthew/Mary Anderson, Puck/Quinn, Finn/Rachel, Brittany, Sam, OCs.
Categories: AU, drama, angst, H/C
Rating: R-ish this part
Warnings: Non-con (sort of explicit, in first part), mpreg, intersex gender, mention of abortion
Word count: 3,362 words this part (23,000+ total so far)
Prompt: this prompt here on the glee_kink_meme, and 'Early 20th century for au-bingo.
A/N: Nearly there!! Please comment if you enjoy this fic :)
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5
-----------------------------------------------------
PART 6:
Elizabeth was right; the swelling went down within a week and Kurt was able to walk again. And the unborn babe inside him was safe too, which pleased everyone. It had been a stressful week though, with Kurt unable to move from the bed except with help. The first day had been the worst, wondering whether the baby had been hurt, and Blaine had been at Kurt’s side as much as he could so that they could reassure each other. When it was certain that the baby was safe, he had to get back to work.
Karofsky, who had been roughed up by Blaine’s friends at the building site, was banished from the village (no-one could prove that George had been passing information to Karofsky but everyone was more wary of him anyway). None of the women felt safe with someone like that in the village who could attack a defenceless pregnant person.
Blaine had spent the week alternating between being at Kurt’s side and putting the finishing touches on their house. He was leaving the decorating to Kurt though, wanting to make his husband-to-be happy in their home. Many people on the village had donated things, such as dressers, a bed big enough for the two of them, a table and chairs for the kitchen, and pots for cooking. Kurt had been working on curtains, sheets and tablecloths for the past month, and now that he was recovered from the attack, he and Blaine would start putting everything into their new home.
Kurt had enlisted his mother’s help, along with his two oldest sisters, Annie and Gretel, to get everything right. He wanted his home to be perfect and he didn’t trust anyone outside his family to do it, which caused Rachel to sulk for several days.
Finally, after four days, he had everything in the right place. There were some framed pictures and two vases with flowers sitting on the mantelpiece above the fire in the kitchen, and the windows were framed by beautiful lace curtains and red drapes for privacy. The table and chairs were situated near the fire for ease of eating, and there was a small couch - worn but still serviceable - on the other side, away from the fire, for sitting upon in the evenings. Out the back of the kitchen was a small laundry with a trough for washing clothes - or people.
Upstairs were three bedrooms. The largest one was for Blaine and Kurt, and it housed their bed and a wardrobe for their clothes and things like sheets or blankets. The same red drapes hung across the window, and a beautiful multicoloured quilt lay on the bed. The other two bedrooms were for future children; one would serve as a nursery for now and the other would act as a spare room for anyone who wished to stay over. Later, one room would be for their daughters, the other for their sons.
When Blaine saw what Kurt had done, he was very pleased. He swept Kurt into his arms and kissed him passionately, expressing his love through actions, not words. His dream was so close to coming true!
Kurt allowed himself to get lost in the kiss. He was so proud of himself for his work, for designing the house to be practical yet aesthetically pleasing, and he was actually looking forward to living there.
When Blaine finally let him breathe, Kurt joked, “So I take it you like it then?”
“I love it,” Blaine assured him seriously but with a huge smile on his face. “I can’t wait to live here with you.”
“Just two more Sundays,” Kurt agreed. The marriage banns (announcing their intention to wed) had to be read out in church three times before the wedding, which had been planned for the afternoon of the third Sunday.
“Ten days.” Blaine was eagerly counting down. “And I was hoping… will you marry me in the church?”
“What?” Kurt was shocked by the question. Blaine knew how he felt about the church.
Blaine continued on, “I know you don’t want to but I’ve been thinking. If we don’t get married in the church, our marriage won’t be recognised and our children will be considered illegitimate. And I don’t want our children to have that stigma.” That would mean that their children would be bullied and teased, and possibly ostracised, by the rest of the village.
Kurt knew that Blaine had a point but he really didn’t want to set foot in a place he wasn’t welcome. “What if the Reverend says we can’t?”
“I’ve talked to him and he’ll marry us in the church if we agree to one thing.” Blaine paused, knowing that the next part would be unwelcome. “That you are listed as the bride.”
Kurt’s initial reaction was to say ‘no’; he was not going to pander to the small-minded ideas about who he should be. But he could tell that being married in the church meant a lot to Blaine. He moved out of Blaine’s arms and over to the fireplace, trying to think about his answer.
When Kurt didn’t say anything, Blaine spoke again. “And I thought that to make up for it, we could go down to the stream today, have a picnic, and say our own vows under the trees. You and I know that we’ll be husbands together, even if there are people around us who won’t acknowledge that, and this can be our way of doing that.”
That was such a romantic idea, and Kurt was excited at the thought.
“You would do that for me?”
“I would do anything for you,” Blaine declared, stepping over to Kurt and taking his hands. “I know that people in the village don’t talk too much about love but I do love you. I couldn’t imagine spending my life with anyone else.”
Fighting back tears of happiness, Kurt stated jokingly, “That sounds awfully like our wedding vows.”
“I’d better not say anything else now then,” Blaine played along. He kissed Kurt’s cheek and then tugged him towards the door. “Let’s go.”
When Blaine stopped to pick up the picnic basket that was outside the door, Kurt laughed.
“When did you put that there?”
“I told Mother to drop it off after we went inside,” Blaine admitted, guiding his soon-to-be husband down towards the stream. He didn’t let go of Kurt’s hand until they reached a secluded spot upstream of the small bridge, and then it was only to reach into the basket and pull out a thin blanket. “I know you don’t like getting your clothes dirty, so I planned ahead.”
Kurt grinned happily as Blaine spread the blanket out, pleased that his lover had remembered that.
“Why, thank you, kind sir,” he said playfully before gracefully sitting down.
“You’re welcome, kind sir,” Blaine responded in kind. He sat next to Kurt and started unloading the basket. “To begin with, we have pumpkin soup, freshly made, then to follow we have bread with cheese or honey, and to finish with, scones with strawberry jam and cream.” He had planned this picnic for a week, waiting until Kurt was recovered from the attack so that he could spoil him.
“Wow.” Kurt watched as Blaine poured the soup out of the earthenware pot into two bowls. “You shouldn’t have gone to so much trouble.”
“I wanted to,” Blaine replied. “It’s not much but I’m going to work hard so that there’s always food on the table and rent to keep a roof over our head. And if you want to, we’ll work out a way for you to earn some money too.” He remembered how Kurt had felt last time they had discussed this.
“Thank you.” Kurt wasn’t sure what he could do but with Blaine’s support, he would figure out something.
They spent the next half hour eating, laughing and making small talk, just enjoying being in each other’s company away from the prying eyes of the villagers. By the time they got to the scones, Blaine had shifted to lean against the tree and Kurt sat between his legs, leaning against him. They were becoming much more comfortable in touching casually, especially when they were alone.
Blaine fed Kurt the scones and they kissed in between, making the most of being together. Occasionally, Blaine’s hand shifted down to rub Kurt’s stomach, marvelling at the feel of the hard bump. Kurt was just over thirteen weeks along now and the bump was getting more pronounced. “Do you think it’s a boy or a girl?” Blaine asked after the last scone was eaten.
“I don’t know.” Kurt put his hand over Blaine’s. He was becoming more and more attached to the baby as the weeks went by, especially after the recent scare. “But I think I want a girl.”
“With your eyes and my hair,” Blaine agreed. It didn’t really matter to him but in his mind, he could see a little girl with curly black hair framing a feminine version of Kurt’s face, and blue-grey eyes and a cheeky smile. “We haven’t really discussed how many children we want.”
“Nature will decide that, not us,” Kurt pointed out. “We can’t exactly control it.”
Blaine had been thinking about that. He still had to figure a few things out but he was fairly sure he might have a way.
“But if we could?”
Kurt thought about it. Being one of seven had been good but he wasn’t sure he wanted to carry that many children himself. “Four, maybe. Two girls, two boys.”
“Sounds good to me.” Blaine didn’t know how hard this pregnancy was going to end up for Kurt so if they didn’t do this too many times, he wouldn’t mind.
They sat in silence for several minutes, then Blaine shifted so that he could see Kurt’s face and took his lover’s hands, ready to make his vows. “Kurt, I love you so much. There’s never been a lot of talk about love around here because that’s not how things were done. Your parents have shown me what it’s like to truly love someone and I love you with my whole heart. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, taking care of you but also being taken care of, and raising our children to be good people. You are so kind, despite everything that’s happened, and so funny and warm, and generous, and I will be proud to call you my husband.”
Kurt was quiet for a few moments, working out in his head what to say before speaking.
“I never believed that I could find someone here with whom I could be happy, and our first encounter didn’t help. But you have proven to be a good person, full of love and forgiveness, as well as persistence and patience, and I couldn’t help but fall in love with you. Our life together won’t be easy but I’m glad that you will be at my side, and I am happy to call you my husband.”
Blaine leaned in and they shared a tender kiss, one that sealed their promises to each other. It didn’t matter about the ceremony in ten days - they were now married in their hearts. And although they were young, they were under no illusions that their marriage would be easy; life was hard in their village, they were poor, and they were both men, which meant that some people would always dislike them. But they were willing to work hard to make the marriage work and to enjoy life as best they could.
**********
“How can you countenance such a union?” Michael Green protested to Reverend Wright before the next Sunday service. “If Kurt Hummel insists on being called a man, then you are allowing a union between two men!”
“The purpose of marriage is procreation,” the Reverend replied. He was not a forthright man by nature but once he had an opinion, he stuck to it. “Blaine and Kurt will be able to produce children, therefore their union can be sanctified.”
“Well, I object.” Green was still smarting about his fall from grace. And since Dave’s attack on Kurt - which was organised by himself and Williams - had failed, they were having to use other means to prevent the marriage. “Two boys should not be married. And under the rules set by the church, that means you cannot marry them.”
The Reverend sighed heavily. “I’ll talk to the families.”
**********
“He can’t do that!” Blaine protested on Sunday afternoon. Reverend Wright had called around after lunch, fortunately finding the Hummels dining with them as well, which saved him making a second explanation.
“I’m afraid he can,” Reverend Wright stated. “Unless it can be proven that his reason is unjust, the objection stands.”
“How about the fact that he’s taking revenge for being outed from the council?” Burt said angrily. “He wasn’t concerned about it when he was still there.”
“That’s because he thought of me as a woman,” Kurt said bitterly. “And then we forced him not to.”
Blaine gripped Kurt’s hand and stared at Wright. “Isn’t the reason invalid anyway? We agreed to Kurt being listed as the bride, therefore in that respect, we’re not two men getting married.”
Burt’s outburst of “You what?” was shushed by his wife.
“That is true,” the Reverend admitted.
“And Burt is right,” Matthew spoke up. He still wasn’t entirely for his marriage but he had seen how happy the two boys were together. “Green wants revenge and the boys are the easiest target.”
“But it still needs to be proven that that is the motivation for the objection,” Reverend Wright pointed out. “And he will never admit it.”
“What about his wife?” Elizabeth suggested. “She will probably have overheard something, even if it was just boasting about stopping the wedding.”
Burt nodded, agreeing with his wife.
“You should talk with Alice tomorrow, see what she has to say.”
Reverend Wright resolved to do just that, though at a time when her husband wasn’t home to intimidate her.
**********
The next day, the Reverend was as good as his word. He talked to Alice Green and she had indeed over heard her husband talking with Daniel Williams about ways to make the boys pay for defying them. He thanked her for her honesty and then went immediately to break the news to the Hummels.
“Those men have some serious issues,” Burt complained after Reverend Wright told them of what he had learned. “They need to be taught to stop meddling in other folks’ business.”
“That won’t work,” Kurt predicted, though he was pleased that the wedding was back on. Ever since the picnic, he had been planning and creating a stylish outfit for the wedding. “You’ve always said that men like that don’t change.”
Burt grudgingly and silently admitted that was true. Still, it didn’t stop him from wishing he could go and punch the two men until they saw sense.
Kurt turned to face the preacher. “Reverend, thank you for allowing myself and Blaine to marry. I know the decision can’t have been easy for you but I’m honoured that you will allow us to marry in your church.” He wasn’t entirely happy about the idea but Blaine wanted it and Kurt didn’t want to deny him.
Reverend Wright was taken aback by the amount of gratitude that he heard in the young man’s voice. “You’re most welcome, Kurt. And I would be most pleased if you would consider rejoining the congregation in the future.”
“That depends on your sermons,” Kurt said honestly. “But I will consider it.”
The preacher nodded; he couldn’t expect more than that. “Then I will leave you to your work and call upon the Andersons. Good day.”
As soon as Reverend Wright was out the door, Kurt rushed out of the room. He had a wedding outfit to complete and just over five days to do it in.
**********
Sunday morning, Kurt was up at the crack of dawn. He had spent the last few nights in his parents’ house while Blaine had slept in their new house, protecting it in case anyone tried to vandalise it. Before that, they had spent a few nights in the Anderson house experimenting with ways to improve their love-making. Kurt really enjoyed the intimacy and the pleasure, though he wondered how hard it would be as his pregnancy progressed.
The church service was at ten o’clock every Sunday, allowing people to go home afterwards and prepare lunch. Today, Kurt and Blaine would be inviting everyone - well, nearly everyone - to remain and witness their marriage after the sermon. Then there would be a small lunch afterwards for friends and family at their new house, which Elizabeth and Mary had organised.
And Kurt was nervous.
There was a great potential for things to go wrong. If any of the former members of the council protested, then they wouldn’t be able to get married, and since Green and Williams were going to find out that their arguments against the wedding hadn’t been heeded… Still, he shouldn’t invite trouble where there wasn’t any. He just had to hope that everything would turn out alright.
Kurt went out into the kitchen where his suit was laid out on the table. He trailed a hand over the material. It was as fine as he could find - that was, not as coarse as what the men of the village usually wore. He had embroidered the cuffs and collar in a white thread so that it stood out against the black material, and he smiled at how it looked. It matched the loose white shirt, which was embroidered with black thread, that he would wear with the suit. Kurt was looking forward to wearing it, especially since it would help hide his baby bump.
And then, if everything went well, he would be married. The thought still worried him sometimes but he felt more prepared for it than he had three months ago.
A movement behind him alerted Kurt to the fact he wasn’t alone. He turned around to see his mother. “Good morning.”
“Good morning, sweetheart,” Elizabeth said. She was already dressed, and her dark hair was tied neatly in a bun. “You’re up early.”
“Couldn’t sleep,” Kurt replied. A wave of emotion swept over him as he looked at his mother and realised this was the last time he would get to talk to his mother like this, early in the morning. Kurt went over and embraced his mother tightly. “I love you,” he murmured.
Elizabeth held her son, relishing the feel of it. Kurt wasn’t one for hugging much so this was all the more special. “I love you too.”
“Were you nervous before marrying Father?” Kurt asked as he took comfort from the embrace.
“A little,” Elizabeth replied as she thought back to that time. “But I knew that I wanted to be with your father and that together we would make things work.”
That was what he felt about Blaine but there were still a few doubts.
“What if he’s just being nice and when we’re married, Blaine starts acting all horrible?”
Elizabeth laughed.
“Kurt, do you really think that Blaine could be horrible to anyone, let alone you? He would do anything for you, you know that.
“I know, I just… what if he doesn’t like living with me? Or I with him?” Those thoughts had stirred him to wakefulness earlier and hadn’t allowed him to go back to sleep.
“Sweetheart, you’ll be fine. It’ll take a while but you’ll learn to live together and then you’ll wonder how you ever lived apart.” It had been that way for her. “Just enjoy today and let everything sort itself out.”
Kurt let out a sigh and then stepped back out of the embrace.
“Thank you. For everything.”
Elizabeth ruffled her boy’s hair and smiled. “You’re welcome. Now, I’ve got some cooking to do. Do you want to help?”
Kurt nodded. He needed something else to think about until it was time to get ready.
Part 7...
Fandom: Glee
Summary: In the small sexist village, Kurt Hummel finds life difficult. He’s a man but constantly treated as a woman because of his not-straightforward gender. He wants to leave the village but Blaine Anderson wants him as a wife. Can they compromise their dreams without a lot of heartbreak?
Pairings/Characters: Kurt/Blaine, Burt/Elizabeth, Matthew/Mary Anderson, Puck/Quinn, Finn/Rachel, Brittany, Sam, OCs.
Categories: AU, drama, angst, H/C
Rating: R-ish this part
Warnings: Non-con (sort of explicit, in first part), mpreg, intersex gender, mention of abortion
Word count: 3,362 words this part (23,000+ total so far)
Prompt: this prompt here on the glee_kink_meme, and 'Early 20th century for au-bingo.
A/N: Nearly there!! Please comment if you enjoy this fic :)
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5
-----------------------------------------------------
PART 6:
Elizabeth was right; the swelling went down within a week and Kurt was able to walk again. And the unborn babe inside him was safe too, which pleased everyone. It had been a stressful week though, with Kurt unable to move from the bed except with help. The first day had been the worst, wondering whether the baby had been hurt, and Blaine had been at Kurt’s side as much as he could so that they could reassure each other. When it was certain that the baby was safe, he had to get back to work.
Karofsky, who had been roughed up by Blaine’s friends at the building site, was banished from the village (no-one could prove that George had been passing information to Karofsky but everyone was more wary of him anyway). None of the women felt safe with someone like that in the village who could attack a defenceless pregnant person.
Blaine had spent the week alternating between being at Kurt’s side and putting the finishing touches on their house. He was leaving the decorating to Kurt though, wanting to make his husband-to-be happy in their home. Many people on the village had donated things, such as dressers, a bed big enough for the two of them, a table and chairs for the kitchen, and pots for cooking. Kurt had been working on curtains, sheets and tablecloths for the past month, and now that he was recovered from the attack, he and Blaine would start putting everything into their new home.
Kurt had enlisted his mother’s help, along with his two oldest sisters, Annie and Gretel, to get everything right. He wanted his home to be perfect and he didn’t trust anyone outside his family to do it, which caused Rachel to sulk for several days.
Finally, after four days, he had everything in the right place. There were some framed pictures and two vases with flowers sitting on the mantelpiece above the fire in the kitchen, and the windows were framed by beautiful lace curtains and red drapes for privacy. The table and chairs were situated near the fire for ease of eating, and there was a small couch - worn but still serviceable - on the other side, away from the fire, for sitting upon in the evenings. Out the back of the kitchen was a small laundry with a trough for washing clothes - or people.
Upstairs were three bedrooms. The largest one was for Blaine and Kurt, and it housed their bed and a wardrobe for their clothes and things like sheets or blankets. The same red drapes hung across the window, and a beautiful multicoloured quilt lay on the bed. The other two bedrooms were for future children; one would serve as a nursery for now and the other would act as a spare room for anyone who wished to stay over. Later, one room would be for their daughters, the other for their sons.
When Blaine saw what Kurt had done, he was very pleased. He swept Kurt into his arms and kissed him passionately, expressing his love through actions, not words. His dream was so close to coming true!
Kurt allowed himself to get lost in the kiss. He was so proud of himself for his work, for designing the house to be practical yet aesthetically pleasing, and he was actually looking forward to living there.
When Blaine finally let him breathe, Kurt joked, “So I take it you like it then?”
“I love it,” Blaine assured him seriously but with a huge smile on his face. “I can’t wait to live here with you.”
“Just two more Sundays,” Kurt agreed. The marriage banns (announcing their intention to wed) had to be read out in church three times before the wedding, which had been planned for the afternoon of the third Sunday.
“Ten days.” Blaine was eagerly counting down. “And I was hoping… will you marry me in the church?”
“What?” Kurt was shocked by the question. Blaine knew how he felt about the church.
Blaine continued on, “I know you don’t want to but I’ve been thinking. If we don’t get married in the church, our marriage won’t be recognised and our children will be considered illegitimate. And I don’t want our children to have that stigma.” That would mean that their children would be bullied and teased, and possibly ostracised, by the rest of the village.
Kurt knew that Blaine had a point but he really didn’t want to set foot in a place he wasn’t welcome. “What if the Reverend says we can’t?”
“I’ve talked to him and he’ll marry us in the church if we agree to one thing.” Blaine paused, knowing that the next part would be unwelcome. “That you are listed as the bride.”
Kurt’s initial reaction was to say ‘no’; he was not going to pander to the small-minded ideas about who he should be. But he could tell that being married in the church meant a lot to Blaine. He moved out of Blaine’s arms and over to the fireplace, trying to think about his answer.
When Kurt didn’t say anything, Blaine spoke again. “And I thought that to make up for it, we could go down to the stream today, have a picnic, and say our own vows under the trees. You and I know that we’ll be husbands together, even if there are people around us who won’t acknowledge that, and this can be our way of doing that.”
That was such a romantic idea, and Kurt was excited at the thought.
“You would do that for me?”
“I would do anything for you,” Blaine declared, stepping over to Kurt and taking his hands. “I know that people in the village don’t talk too much about love but I do love you. I couldn’t imagine spending my life with anyone else.”
Fighting back tears of happiness, Kurt stated jokingly, “That sounds awfully like our wedding vows.”
“I’d better not say anything else now then,” Blaine played along. He kissed Kurt’s cheek and then tugged him towards the door. “Let’s go.”
When Blaine stopped to pick up the picnic basket that was outside the door, Kurt laughed.
“When did you put that there?”
“I told Mother to drop it off after we went inside,” Blaine admitted, guiding his soon-to-be husband down towards the stream. He didn’t let go of Kurt’s hand until they reached a secluded spot upstream of the small bridge, and then it was only to reach into the basket and pull out a thin blanket. “I know you don’t like getting your clothes dirty, so I planned ahead.”
Kurt grinned happily as Blaine spread the blanket out, pleased that his lover had remembered that.
“Why, thank you, kind sir,” he said playfully before gracefully sitting down.
“You’re welcome, kind sir,” Blaine responded in kind. He sat next to Kurt and started unloading the basket. “To begin with, we have pumpkin soup, freshly made, then to follow we have bread with cheese or honey, and to finish with, scones with strawberry jam and cream.” He had planned this picnic for a week, waiting until Kurt was recovered from the attack so that he could spoil him.
“Wow.” Kurt watched as Blaine poured the soup out of the earthenware pot into two bowls. “You shouldn’t have gone to so much trouble.”
“I wanted to,” Blaine replied. “It’s not much but I’m going to work hard so that there’s always food on the table and rent to keep a roof over our head. And if you want to, we’ll work out a way for you to earn some money too.” He remembered how Kurt had felt last time they had discussed this.
“Thank you.” Kurt wasn’t sure what he could do but with Blaine’s support, he would figure out something.
They spent the next half hour eating, laughing and making small talk, just enjoying being in each other’s company away from the prying eyes of the villagers. By the time they got to the scones, Blaine had shifted to lean against the tree and Kurt sat between his legs, leaning against him. They were becoming much more comfortable in touching casually, especially when they were alone.
Blaine fed Kurt the scones and they kissed in between, making the most of being together. Occasionally, Blaine’s hand shifted down to rub Kurt’s stomach, marvelling at the feel of the hard bump. Kurt was just over thirteen weeks along now and the bump was getting more pronounced. “Do you think it’s a boy or a girl?” Blaine asked after the last scone was eaten.
“I don’t know.” Kurt put his hand over Blaine’s. He was becoming more and more attached to the baby as the weeks went by, especially after the recent scare. “But I think I want a girl.”
“With your eyes and my hair,” Blaine agreed. It didn’t really matter to him but in his mind, he could see a little girl with curly black hair framing a feminine version of Kurt’s face, and blue-grey eyes and a cheeky smile. “We haven’t really discussed how many children we want.”
“Nature will decide that, not us,” Kurt pointed out. “We can’t exactly control it.”
Blaine had been thinking about that. He still had to figure a few things out but he was fairly sure he might have a way.
“But if we could?”
Kurt thought about it. Being one of seven had been good but he wasn’t sure he wanted to carry that many children himself. “Four, maybe. Two girls, two boys.”
“Sounds good to me.” Blaine didn’t know how hard this pregnancy was going to end up for Kurt so if they didn’t do this too many times, he wouldn’t mind.
They sat in silence for several minutes, then Blaine shifted so that he could see Kurt’s face and took his lover’s hands, ready to make his vows. “Kurt, I love you so much. There’s never been a lot of talk about love around here because that’s not how things were done. Your parents have shown me what it’s like to truly love someone and I love you with my whole heart. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, taking care of you but also being taken care of, and raising our children to be good people. You are so kind, despite everything that’s happened, and so funny and warm, and generous, and I will be proud to call you my husband.”
Kurt was quiet for a few moments, working out in his head what to say before speaking.
“I never believed that I could find someone here with whom I could be happy, and our first encounter didn’t help. But you have proven to be a good person, full of love and forgiveness, as well as persistence and patience, and I couldn’t help but fall in love with you. Our life together won’t be easy but I’m glad that you will be at my side, and I am happy to call you my husband.”
Blaine leaned in and they shared a tender kiss, one that sealed their promises to each other. It didn’t matter about the ceremony in ten days - they were now married in their hearts. And although they were young, they were under no illusions that their marriage would be easy; life was hard in their village, they were poor, and they were both men, which meant that some people would always dislike them. But they were willing to work hard to make the marriage work and to enjoy life as best they could.
**********
“How can you countenance such a union?” Michael Green protested to Reverend Wright before the next Sunday service. “If Kurt Hummel insists on being called a man, then you are allowing a union between two men!”
“The purpose of marriage is procreation,” the Reverend replied. He was not a forthright man by nature but once he had an opinion, he stuck to it. “Blaine and Kurt will be able to produce children, therefore their union can be sanctified.”
“Well, I object.” Green was still smarting about his fall from grace. And since Dave’s attack on Kurt - which was organised by himself and Williams - had failed, they were having to use other means to prevent the marriage. “Two boys should not be married. And under the rules set by the church, that means you cannot marry them.”
The Reverend sighed heavily. “I’ll talk to the families.”
**********
“He can’t do that!” Blaine protested on Sunday afternoon. Reverend Wright had called around after lunch, fortunately finding the Hummels dining with them as well, which saved him making a second explanation.
“I’m afraid he can,” Reverend Wright stated. “Unless it can be proven that his reason is unjust, the objection stands.”
“How about the fact that he’s taking revenge for being outed from the council?” Burt said angrily. “He wasn’t concerned about it when he was still there.”
“That’s because he thought of me as a woman,” Kurt said bitterly. “And then we forced him not to.”
Blaine gripped Kurt’s hand and stared at Wright. “Isn’t the reason invalid anyway? We agreed to Kurt being listed as the bride, therefore in that respect, we’re not two men getting married.”
Burt’s outburst of “You what?” was shushed by his wife.
“That is true,” the Reverend admitted.
“And Burt is right,” Matthew spoke up. He still wasn’t entirely for his marriage but he had seen how happy the two boys were together. “Green wants revenge and the boys are the easiest target.”
“But it still needs to be proven that that is the motivation for the objection,” Reverend Wright pointed out. “And he will never admit it.”
“What about his wife?” Elizabeth suggested. “She will probably have overheard something, even if it was just boasting about stopping the wedding.”
Burt nodded, agreeing with his wife.
“You should talk with Alice tomorrow, see what she has to say.”
Reverend Wright resolved to do just that, though at a time when her husband wasn’t home to intimidate her.
**********
The next day, the Reverend was as good as his word. He talked to Alice Green and she had indeed over heard her husband talking with Daniel Williams about ways to make the boys pay for defying them. He thanked her for her honesty and then went immediately to break the news to the Hummels.
“Those men have some serious issues,” Burt complained after Reverend Wright told them of what he had learned. “They need to be taught to stop meddling in other folks’ business.”
“That won’t work,” Kurt predicted, though he was pleased that the wedding was back on. Ever since the picnic, he had been planning and creating a stylish outfit for the wedding. “You’ve always said that men like that don’t change.”
Burt grudgingly and silently admitted that was true. Still, it didn’t stop him from wishing he could go and punch the two men until they saw sense.
Kurt turned to face the preacher. “Reverend, thank you for allowing myself and Blaine to marry. I know the decision can’t have been easy for you but I’m honoured that you will allow us to marry in your church.” He wasn’t entirely happy about the idea but Blaine wanted it and Kurt didn’t want to deny him.
Reverend Wright was taken aback by the amount of gratitude that he heard in the young man’s voice. “You’re most welcome, Kurt. And I would be most pleased if you would consider rejoining the congregation in the future.”
“That depends on your sermons,” Kurt said honestly. “But I will consider it.”
The preacher nodded; he couldn’t expect more than that. “Then I will leave you to your work and call upon the Andersons. Good day.”
As soon as Reverend Wright was out the door, Kurt rushed out of the room. He had a wedding outfit to complete and just over five days to do it in.
**********
Sunday morning, Kurt was up at the crack of dawn. He had spent the last few nights in his parents’ house while Blaine had slept in their new house, protecting it in case anyone tried to vandalise it. Before that, they had spent a few nights in the Anderson house experimenting with ways to improve their love-making. Kurt really enjoyed the intimacy and the pleasure, though he wondered how hard it would be as his pregnancy progressed.
The church service was at ten o’clock every Sunday, allowing people to go home afterwards and prepare lunch. Today, Kurt and Blaine would be inviting everyone - well, nearly everyone - to remain and witness their marriage after the sermon. Then there would be a small lunch afterwards for friends and family at their new house, which Elizabeth and Mary had organised.
And Kurt was nervous.
There was a great potential for things to go wrong. If any of the former members of the council protested, then they wouldn’t be able to get married, and since Green and Williams were going to find out that their arguments against the wedding hadn’t been heeded… Still, he shouldn’t invite trouble where there wasn’t any. He just had to hope that everything would turn out alright.
Kurt went out into the kitchen where his suit was laid out on the table. He trailed a hand over the material. It was as fine as he could find - that was, not as coarse as what the men of the village usually wore. He had embroidered the cuffs and collar in a white thread so that it stood out against the black material, and he smiled at how it looked. It matched the loose white shirt, which was embroidered with black thread, that he would wear with the suit. Kurt was looking forward to wearing it, especially since it would help hide his baby bump.
And then, if everything went well, he would be married. The thought still worried him sometimes but he felt more prepared for it than he had three months ago.
A movement behind him alerted Kurt to the fact he wasn’t alone. He turned around to see his mother. “Good morning.”
“Good morning, sweetheart,” Elizabeth said. She was already dressed, and her dark hair was tied neatly in a bun. “You’re up early.”
“Couldn’t sleep,” Kurt replied. A wave of emotion swept over him as he looked at his mother and realised this was the last time he would get to talk to his mother like this, early in the morning. Kurt went over and embraced his mother tightly. “I love you,” he murmured.
Elizabeth held her son, relishing the feel of it. Kurt wasn’t one for hugging much so this was all the more special. “I love you too.”
“Were you nervous before marrying Father?” Kurt asked as he took comfort from the embrace.
“A little,” Elizabeth replied as she thought back to that time. “But I knew that I wanted to be with your father and that together we would make things work.”
That was what he felt about Blaine but there were still a few doubts.
“What if he’s just being nice and when we’re married, Blaine starts acting all horrible?”
Elizabeth laughed.
“Kurt, do you really think that Blaine could be horrible to anyone, let alone you? He would do anything for you, you know that.
“I know, I just… what if he doesn’t like living with me? Or I with him?” Those thoughts had stirred him to wakefulness earlier and hadn’t allowed him to go back to sleep.
“Sweetheart, you’ll be fine. It’ll take a while but you’ll learn to live together and then you’ll wonder how you ever lived apart.” It had been that way for her. “Just enjoy today and let everything sort itself out.”
Kurt let out a sigh and then stepped back out of the embrace.
“Thank you. For everything.”
Elizabeth ruffled her boy’s hair and smiled. “You’re welcome. Now, I’ve got some cooking to do. Do you want to help?”
Kurt nodded. He needed something else to think about until it was time to get ready.
Part 7...