Sophie shook her head furiously but allowed Blaine to scrap the crusts of her sandwich and the few fries left on her plate into his empty container. He turned to find Kurt yawning as well, blinking sleepily. "Oh no, not you too," he joked, clearing off the coffee table.

Kurt shook his head. "Just a bit emotionally drained, I'll be fine once I get up and move around for a bit."

Blaine nodded sympathetically, digging around in the diaper bag and pulling out the wipes. He made quick work of cleaning Sophie's hands and face, smiling softly as she yawned again. Once he was done, he stepped back.

"All right, Miss Sophie, tell Dada bye so we can go home."

Sophie shook her head furiously and got up, running to her father and clinging to him. "No byebye, Dada."

"I'm sorry, sweetie, but you have to go with Blaine. Dada needs to work," Kurt told her soothingly, allowing her to cling as he rocked her slowly. "You can go home and take a nap and when you wake up, you can play with Blaine, all right?"

"Oh-tay," Sophie sighed. Kurt stood, waiting until Blaine had the diaper bag adjusted before handing over Sophie, pausing to give her a kiss and run a soft hand down her back.

"I love you."

"Love choo."

Blaine nodded to him, listening as Kurt started thanking him for bringing her and telling him what time he thought he would be home and just babbling, basically. Once they reached the exit, Kurt kissed Sophie's head once more and waved goodbye to Blaine.

As he walked back to his office, nodding to Leigh as he passed, he thought about Blaine and how, maybe, if they had met in another time or another place, maybe something could have happened between them. He worried a little about how attracted he was to the other man, since he was technically his employee, but he would never act on it, so there was no harm in looking, right?

888

The walk back to the flat took a little longer than the walk to the office, as people had flooded the sidewalks, all rushing about to get their food and make it back to work as soon as possible. Most people tried to avoid jostling Blaine when they saw the sleeping child in his arms, but some didn't seem to care and by the time they made it to the flat, Blaine was thoroughly annoyed and very thankful that Sophie was still asleep.

It took careful maneuvering, but Blaine was able to get Sophie laid down without upsetting the diaper bag. He pulled it off and then gently removed her jacket and shoes, setting the shoes back in her closet and grabbing the jacket and bag. A glint of light caught the glass of the picture frame above the bed and he took a minute to study the picture. The man was definitely Kurt, a few years younger and lighter, not like the man who appeared to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders.

The woman stood in front of him, a few inches shorter so that her head was about even with Kurt's mouth. She had white blonde hair, cut chin length and startling green eyes. Both were dressed in black pants and white shirts, though hers flowed freely around her protruding belly and Kurt's was tucked under a plain black vest. Their arms were wrapped around her stomach, Kurt's hands resting on top of hers as they smiled at the camera.

Who was she?

Quietly closing the door behind him, Blaine returned to the front door, stowing the bag on the bottom shelf of the table and hanging up both of their coats.

And then there was nothing to be done.

Blaine sighed, looking around the living room and really taking in everything that he hadn't noticed before. There were a few pictures of Sophie with Kurt and various other people that he guessed were family members on the shelves and tables, but he couldn't find any of the woman from the picture above Sophie's bed.

She was obviously Sophie's mother, the resemblance was marked, but that was the only picture in the flat. What had happened?

His phone buzzing in his pocket made him jump, shaking him out of his trance. He hurried to pull it out and answered as soon as he saw Kurt's name on the screen. "Hello?"

"Hey, Blaine, I have a small favour to ask."

"Anything, what do you need?"

"Will you go to my room and look on my nightstand? I can't find my flashdrive and I need it."

"Of course." Blaine started walking towards Kurt's room. "Just one second." He could hear Kurt moving around in the silence, clearly anxious about his missing flashdrive. Blaine pushed opened the door and took in the room at a glance. There was nothing on either side of the perfectly made bed to indicate which side was Kurt's. "Okay, I'm in your room. Um, where am I supposed to look?"

"The right side of the bed," Kurt told him. He walked alongside the large bed, stopping in front of the nightstand.

"All right, I don't see anything on here." Nothing except a photo of Kurt, Rachel and the blonde woman from the photo in Sophie's room, standing outside of what looked like the zoo. He took a moment to study it while Kurt huffed.

"Will you open the top drawer? Maybe it fell in there," Kurt said, irritated. "Where is that stupid fu-"

"Oh, here it is!" Blaine exclaimed, picking up the small white object. "It fell on the floor between the nightstand and the bed."

"Oh thank god," Kurt said, sighing in relief. "Okay, I'm going to send a runner over there. If you just grab an envelope from the desk by the kitchen table, put it in there and write my name on it, I would appreciate it so much."

"Of course, of course."

"Awesome! Someone will be there in five minutes. Thank you so much, Blaine!"

"Of course, no problem." They hung up and Blaine started to make his way out of the room when something caught his eye. In the corner of the room was a set of shelves, each one boasting several more picture frames. His eyes darted around and, feeling a bit like he was in a bad spy movie, he moved closer to look at them.

The first one was of Kurt and Rachel in a small flat, boxes crowded around them as their arms circled around each other's waist. There were several of them and eventually the blonde woman in the same flat, then branching out to different places. Pictures after some of Rachel's shows and one of the blonde woman and Kurt holding up what looked like the very first issue of What's Next. Towards the end were some of a much younger Kurt, from what Blaine guessed was high school when he was still babyfaced, his cheeks slightly red. And that's when Blaine saw it. Kurt, in a cheerleading outfit, his cheeks flushed and a crowd behind him. Blaine could only guess it was during one of his performances, his hair perfectly coiffed, though sweat glistened on his face.

Blaine snapped out of it when he realized that he had been staring at the picture and forced himself to exit the room and hurry to the desk. The envelopes were easy to find and he quickly scribbled Kurt Hummel on the front before placing the drive in and sealing it. There was a light tap on the door and Blaine hurried to open it, not wanting the knocking to wake Sophie. Handing off the envelope to the runner was easy, the boy acknowledging that he knew where to drop it off and assuring Blaine the package wouldn't be damaged.

The next couple of hours consisted of Blaine trying to block the image of Kurt, sweaty and in that tight red and white cheerleader outfit. He was thankful when Sophie finally woke up and they got busy snacking on some cheese and crackers.

Once they cleaned up their mess (Sophie giggling when Blaine attempted to balance a bit of cheese on her nose), they settled in for another History Channel special, this one on Atlantis. Halfway through it, the front door was unlocked and flung open. He looked at the time, noting that it was much earlier than Kurt had said he would be getting off.

The clink of keys falling into the bowl by the door was followed the sound of the fridge door opening. There was a pause and then the sound of footsteps and the sharp snap of a soda can opening.

A large man stepped around the corner, chugging on a can of Coke. He paused when saw Blaine and slowly lowered his drink. He swallowed, his eyebrows furrowing. "Who are you?" he asked suspiciously.

Blaine stood and approached him, a charming smile on his face and his hand held out. "Hello, I'm Blaine, Sophie's nanny. May I ask who are you?"

The man was cut off by a shriek from Sophie, who flew at him, colliding with his legs as she yelled, "Undle Finn!"

The man, Finn, Blaine guessed, grinned, leaning down to scoop up Sophie in one arm, being careful not to tip his can over. "Hey Sophie!" He blew a raspberry against her cheek and neck. Sophie laughed, pushing at his face as she threw her head back.

Finn pulled away, still grinning broadly. "So you're the nanny? Sorry man, I kinda forgot about you. I'm Finn, Kurt's brother." He finally shook Blaine's hand. "I've never met a guy nanny before, that's pretty cool."

Blaine chuckled, "Well, I don't think there are very many of us, so it makes sense."

They chatted for a few moments until Finn said, "You know, it was my idea to get a nanny."

"Oh yeah?"

Finn nodded. "Yeah, Kurt's always so busy and he was so over worked with everything at the magazine and stuff. My wife, Jen, thought it was a good idea too." He frowned. "Kurt's had it pretty hard these past few years, what with having to raise Sophie alone and get the magazine back up after -" He cut himself off, glancing at Blaine. "After everything that happened," he finished lamely.

Blaine nodded, not pressing the issue but burning with curiosity. "Yeah, I could tell the first time I met him that he was under a lot of stress."

Finn nodded, obviously relieved that Blaine apparently hadn't caught his almost slip-up. "So you like music, then? I mean, if you went to Julliard, I assume you do, but, you know." He shrugged.

"Oh, yeah, I love singing and playing the piano. Actually, Kurt asked me to perform at an event for him, if he can't find someone to replace Rachel."

"Rachel?" Finn's brows furrowed. "What happened to Rachel?"

Blaine bit his lip, mentally smacking his head. "Uh, I'm not sure..." He trailed off as Finn leaned back, digging into his pockets and coming up empty.

"Crap, crap, where did I- Oh, here it is!" Finn pulled a phone out of his pocket and checked the messages, swearing as he listened to a voicemail. "Damn it, I gotta go." He kissed Sophie's head and stood, Blaine following suite. He offered his hand. "It was good to meet you, Blaine. I'll be seeing you around then. I usually come over after I get off work to steal a soda. Jen doesn't let me have them at home," he added with a wink.

Blaine laughed. "Your secret is safe with me." They bumped fists and Finn left, his eyes fixed on his phone as he frowned.

Less than five minutes after Finn left, the door opened once again and an elderly woman stepped around the corner. "Hello, Sophie! And you must be Blaine." She waved him off when he made to stand. "Kurt told me about you. I'm Angie, the cook."

"Oh, yes, Kurt said you would be coming by." Blaine stood anyway, offering his hand, which Angie shook, clearly amused. "Is, uh, is there anything you need help with?"

Angie laughed, shaking her head. "No, dear boy, I know where everything is, don't you worry." She knelt down next to Sophie, who grinned up with her and held up a toy. "Oh, wow, that's so neat!" she exclaimed, picking up the toy and examining it for a moment before returning it. "What else do you have?"

Blaine watched them play together for a couple of minutes before Angie stood, patting Sophie's head. "All right, sweetie, I need to get cooking before your daddy gets home." She aimed a smile at Blaine as she walked to the kitchen. Sophie trailed behind her and Blaine brought up the rear. "What, are we all cooking tonight?" Angie laughed.

Blaine shrugged. "We can help if you want."

Angie stared at him for a moment before shrugging. "Do you bake?"

Blaine nodded, "I do sometimes."

"Good, you can help with the desert then."

Angie opened the fridge and pulled out a whole chicken, putting it in the sink and washing her hands before grabbing a cleaning wipe and wiping down the shelf quickly. "All right, how about you grab four cloves of garlic and an onion out of the pantry to start out with," Angie directed. She torn the wrapping off of the chicken and began rinsing it as Blaine did as he was told. He handed Sophie the garlic, laughing when she sniffed it and made a face, and they put their bounty on the counter.

"Thank you." She put the chicken, now rinsed, in a pan that Blaine hadn't even seen her pull out. She washed and dried her hands thoroughly before digging around in a cabinet and pulling out several spices. She directed him on how the onion and garlic were to be chopped while she rubbed olive oil and spices on the chicken and pulled his life story from him.

"Well, I am just so glad that Kurt has found someone to help him out," Angie said as she stuffed the garlic and onions into the chicken's cavity. "Be a dear and cut that lemon in half, please, Blaine."

He did as she bid, ducking his head around the corner to check on Sophie, who had abandoned their kitchen venture in favor of her toys. "Has he been on his own long?"

Angie's face grew sad. "Yes, for a few years now. Even before all that happened with Sophie's mum..." She shook her head, her lips pursed as she blinked back tears. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't talk of it. Just forget what I said."

Blaine nodded, though inwardly he was burning with curiosity once again. Who was Sophie's mother and why was she kept such a secret? "So is this your recipe?" Blaine asked as she viciously squeezed both halves of the lemon over the chicken.

"Yes indeed, an old family one. It's one of Kurt's favorites, along with the cobbler we're going to make." She shoved one of the lemon halves in the chicken, effectively stopping all of the garlic and onions from falling out. "Be a dear and put that in the oven for me, will you?" she asked, tapping her arm against the faucet before holding her hand under the soap dispenser. Blaine put the pan in the oven and set the timer for ten minutes while she washed her hands, handing her a towel when she was done. Once again, he followed her directions, impressing her with his lattice work as they traded baking stories and he wheedled her life story from her.

By the time Kurt arrived home just before seven, the two were cracking jokes and teasing like old friends. He stood in the doorway as Angie told him the biscuits would be ready in ten minutes. He nodded, watching as she and Blaine moved around each other with practiced ease and marveled once again at how well this man had acclimated to, well, everything in Kurt's life. His thoughts went back to earlier at his office...

But, no, he couldn't afford to think like that.

"-all right sweetie? Oh, and we made a cobbler for you. I wrote down the temperature and how long it needs to be in there on the wipe board. If you put it in right after the biscuits are done, it should be ready by the time dessert rolls around," Angie said as she shrugged on her coat. Kurt nodded as her shrewd eyes darted back to where Blaine was washing the dishes. "He's a keeper, that one," she added with a wink.

Kurt rolled his eyes, opening the door to let her out. "Thanks for dinner, Angie," he said.

"Oh, you know it's no problem." She paused just outside the door, cupping his face with one weathered hand. "You know I love you, Kurtsie, and I want you to be happy."

Kurt nodded, breathing in her familiar comforting smell. She shot a significant look at the door before patting his cheek and leaving. Rolling his eyes, because sometimes he just didn't get Angie, he let himself back into the apartment. Blaine was no longer in the kitchen and a peek around the corner showed that the living room was equally empty. A high pitched giggle, followed by a low exclamation, came from down the hall. Kurt leaned against the frame of Sophie's door and watched as Sophie flung her blanket over her head, giggling as Blaine 'looked' for her. She then tore the blanket off, laughing when Blaine pretended to jump in surprise.

He waited until Sophie put the blanket back over her head before saying, "Oh, no, where has my baby gone?"

Blaine turned to grin at him and for a moment, Kurt was caught up in their hazel depths, sparkling with mischief and laughter. Then Sophie was colliding with his legs, yelling, "Dadadadadadada!" as she pawed at his trousers.

Kurt laughed, not bothering to reprimand her as he swooped her up, smothering her with kisses as he hugged her tightly. "Oh, I missed you, baby girl, did you miss me?"

Sophie nodded, her arms tightening around his neck. "Dada, Bane payed wi me!"

"Oh he did? Did you two have lots of fun?" Kurt laughed as Sophie nodded seriously. "Do you want Blaine to come over and play tomorrow?" When Sophie nodded again, her eyes big with excitement, he sat her down. "Why don't you go ask him if he wants to?"

Sophie went over to where Blaine was picking up toys and tugged on his sleeve. "Bane," she whispered.

"Yes, Miss Sophie?" he whispered back, squatting down to her level. Kurt forced his eyes to look away from the way Blaine's ass looked in those pants.

"You pay morrow?"

"I most certainly will, if you'll have me, Miss Sophie."

Sophie nodded enthusiastically and Blaine smiled, picking her up. "Well then, Miss Sophie, it's a date!" He tickled her as he carried her back to her father.

"I'm not sure I approve," Kurt joked, taking Sophie from him and nuzzling his nose against her cheek.

"Oh, no, Miss Sophie, Dada doesn't approved," Blaine gasped, holding a hand over his heart dramatically as Sophie giggled at his theatrics. "This must mean we are like poor Romeo and Juliet! Alas, what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east and Miss Sophie is the sun!"

"Well, hopefully this has a less tragic ending," Kurt smirked.

"Indeed," Blaine nodded seriously. "I'm too pretty to die." He leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Sophie's cheek and filling Kurt's nose with the heady scent of cologne and Blaine. He repressed a shudder, smiling warmly at Blaine when he pulled away. "I shall see you upon the morrow, Miss Sophie."

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" The words flew out of Kurt's mouth before he properly registered what he was saying. He blushed slightly when Blaine shook his head.

"No, thank you," he said kindly. "I'm supposed to be having dinner with a friend."

Kurt nodded in understanding. "Of course, I should have- Well, don't let us keep you," he said brightly, stepping to the side so that Blaine could pass and trying not to breathe too deeply. He followed behind Blaine, cooing at Sophie and setting her up in her highchair as Blaine pulled his shoes and coat on.

He was just calling goodbye to them when the timer went off and Kurt rushed to check on the biscuits. He forced himself to walk away as Kurt bent over the open oven, his trousers stretching tightly over his perfect ass.

Stop it this instant, he hissed at himself, closing the door behind him and hurrying onto the lift. He berated his stupidity all the way down and into the streets. Half of his mind focused on the short walk to his flat while the other wondered way he had lied about having dinner with a friend. Not that he didn't have any friends, he was a pretty popular guy, but he hadn't made plans with anyone. But the thought of spending more time with Kurt made him nervous in a way he couldn't explain.

Not to mention the tightness he felt in his stomach every time he thought of Kurt in the cheerleaders' uniform.

Stop it, bad thinking! he scolded. We are NOT thinking of our new boss like that.

He sighed, nodding to his doorman as he passed. He forced everything from his mind, choosing to put a silly cartoon on and search his (admittedly empty) cupboards for something quick to eat. He was exhausted, even though Sophie had been an absolute angel. Just thinking about having to go grocery shopping made him tired and he finally gave up, calling in some takeaway from the local Thai place.

He tried to get comfortable on his couch, but his fingers were itching. Even after quitting Julliard, he still played at least some bit of music every day. Casting his eyes around, they lit upon his violin, tucked neatly in the corner. He forced himself to move, to get up and take the instrument from its case.

The moment he sat bow to string, everything felt right. His exhaustion was gone and he was content to play snippets from various pieces before settling on Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty. He let the soothing melody play over him until it transformed into something else. He thought of Sophie, the way her nose scrunched when she laughed, the way she swept her bangs back with one hand, the way she curled against him while falling asleep or when she first woke up.

By the time his food had arrived, Blaine already had several lines composed. The knock on the door broke him from his reverie and he hurried to open, paying the delivery girl and assuring her the rest was hers for a tip. He carried his food back into the living room and stared at the paper for a moment before writing Sophie's Song at the top.

His eyes went back and forth from the paper to the show as he ate but it appeared his muse had gone to sleep and no more images of Sophie were forthcoming. He carefully cleaned his violin and put it away before stowing his leftovers in the fridge. He debated on not taking a shower but the reminder of how hard his hair was with all the gel in it made him opt for a quick one. He scrubbed his hair free from its confines and washed the grim of New York off of his face before the fatigue of the day set in. It was almost more than he could do to dry off and pull on a pair of pyjama pants, but he forced himself to before crawling into bed.

888

-pink lips trailing along his torso, licking his nipple as his back arches under the skillful mouth-

-long fingers caressing his neck, tangling in his hair, pulling it roughly as they angle his head for better access-

-breathy gasps tear from his throat he's fucked from behind, everything full and hot and-

-his fingers working the other man open, pulling heavy moans from him as he teases his prostate, sucking on his hipbones-

-hot mouth sinking over his cock and sucking as his tongue traces along the vein, his cheeks red as they hollow and he pulls up-

-his hands tangling in rough red and white fabric as he tears it off the other man, revealing his perfect chest, his pink nipples begging for attention-

-he can taste the sweat as they kiss, can feel it as he runs his hand up the other mans side, making him shiver, his teeth digging into his bottom lip as he fights a moan-

-everything before him is a swirl of flushed pale skin and blue and yellow galaxies and he bites his own lip as the man begins stroking him-

-he woke up thrashing as his orgasm rocked his body. He lay there for several minutes, trying to regain his breath and remember the dream. The dream slipped through his mind like water flowing in a river, too fast for his conscious mind to grasp any images, swept away quicker than he could grasp. He couldn't recall the last time he had come so hard and it definitely wasn't from a dream; that hadn't happened since he was a teenager.

Finally, he gave up, wincing at the stickiness in his pants. Carefully he tugged them off, grabbing a few tissues from the box on his nightstand that were normally reserved for allergy season, cleaning off his cock and pelvis. He hardly remembered throwing them away before he rolled over and fell asleep.