#Mollie Hummel

[themetaphorgirl]

Klaine AU with Molly engament

(I think I translated this properly?)

Kurt only had to wait seven and a half minutes before his mother stopped midsentence and took his left hand in both of hers. "Kurt, did he-" Mollie started to say as she looked at the white gold ring on his finger. He nodded eagerly and she pulled him into a tight hug, laughing her congratulations and pressing kisses to his cheek. 

[redbullandcupcakebatter]

One of the men dragged his mother towards the front door, and Kurt let out a startled yelp. "Mommy! Your wings!"

His mother's beautiful wings were lashed with thick neon blue straps, binding them flat to her back and sides. She wouldn't be able to fly away.

His captor carried him outside into the dark rain, and instantly his pajamas were pelted with cold fat drops. He squirmed as they struck his wings, and he glanced over his shoulder to see his father standing in the doorway, just a slumped black silhouette against the warm yellow light of home. Kurt whined softly through his teeth.

[molliehummel]

Terrible Things

"What are you writing?"

Mollie slammed the lid of the box shut. "Burt!" she gasped. "You scared me."

"Sorry," he said, bending to kiss the top of her bright head. "How're you feeling?"

"All right, I suppose," she lied. She twisted around in her chair to face him. "How was work?"

He launched into a story about an air conditioner repair gone wrong, and she quickly picked up the box, twisted the key in the lock, and stowed it in the kitchen cabinet next to the Pyrex bowls. The key on its little pink ribbon went back around her neck and she tucked under the neckline of her dress.

Burt sank down at the kitchen table. "I'm beat," he said. "What do you want to do for dinner tonight? Are you up to making it, or should I do it, or-"

"I'm not going to let you make dinner tonight," she said, grinning. "I don't think Kurt will be able to stomach yet another night of pancakes."

"It's the only thing I know how to make," he protested. "You're the chef in this family."

Her throat tightened. "Well, maybe I'd better teach you a few things," she said lightly, leaning back against the sink.

Burt just looked at her then, that level-headed "don't pull this crap with me" gaze. "We're not going to lose you, Mollie," he said quietly.

She tried to smile. He reached out and took her slim hands- bony now from how much weight she'd lost- and squeezed them in his big callused fingers. "I love you," she said.

He stood up and kissed her on the forehead. "Love you too," he said. He took a step back and squeezed her hands. "So what're we going to do for dinner, huh? Maybe I should go out and grab something."

Suddenly little footsteps echoed on the stairs. "Daddy!" Kurt shrieked, running into the kitchen and flinging himself into his father's arms. "Daddy's home!"

Burt caught him easily, swooping him up into the air. "Hey, scooter," he said. He settled Kurt on his hip and kissed him on the cheek. "How was school today?"

"Boring," Kurt huffed, draping himself over Burt's broad shoulder. "So boring. We learned about the Specific Ocean."

"The Pacific Ocean, baby," Mollie corrected, smoothing his flyaway hair.

Kurt tugged on the collar of Burt's shirt. "Did you say we're gonna go out to dinner?" he said. "Can we get pizza? Can we, can we, can we?"

Burt looked over Kurt's head at his wife. "Why not?" she said. Kurt cheered happily and shimmied down Burt's legs. "Kurt, you stay with me and help me set the table, okay?"

"Okay," he said, already pulling out the drawer with the silverware.

Burt kissed Mollie on the cheek. "I'll be back in a little bit, then," he said. "Anything in particular you want?"

"No, not really," she said. "Come home safe."

"I will," he called on his way out the door.

Mollie watched Kurt busily set the table, frowning in concentration as he folded the napkins in perfect triangles. She paused to hug him, wrapping her arms around his little shoulder and kissing his soft round cheek.

"Mommy, I'm working," Kurt complained.

"Oh, so sorry," she grinned, kissing the top of his head. She crossed over to the refrigerator and pulled out a bag of lettuce. "Baby, can you do me a favor? Can you get the big glass salad bowl out of the cabinet for me, please?"

"Sure, Mommy," he said, pausing in his work to obey. Mollie rummaged around in the fridge for a bag of carrots. "Ooh, Mommy, what's this? It's pretty!"

She froze. "Honey, put that back," she said.

"But it has my name on it," he said, sounding pleased. She turned around to see him holding the box in his hands, tugging on the lid. "It won't open, Mommy."

She sank down in the kitchen chair. "KK, come here," she said softly. He obeyed slowly, still focused on prying the lid open. She lifted him on her lap- he was still small for his age, and still liked to be cuddled. "Honey, that's for….for later."

"Like my birthday?" Kurt brightened.

"No, not for your birthday," Mollie said, brushing his hair back from his forehead. She had a whole stockpile of presents for his eighth birthday, coming up in two months…and several presents saved up for Burt to give him for the next dozen or so birthdays. "Honey, those are…those are letters."

Kurt frowned. "For me?" he said. He shook the box. "I want them now, Mommy."

She adjusted him on her lap, pulling him a little closer, a little tighter. "They're not for right now," she said softly. "They're for later. For when you turn nine, and ten, and…all those birthdays." She cradled him close like he was still her little baby; he squirmed a little in her too-tight grip. "And for when you start high school, and when you get your first kiss. Your first job. When you go to college. All the big things."

Kurt frowned. "But Mommy, that's really far away," he said. "I want them now." He plucked at the lid. "Who wrote the letters to me?"

"I did," she said. "Just in case…I'm not here for all those special days."

Kurt dropped the box, letting it clatter to the floor, and wriggled around in her embrace until he was facing her, his arms tight around her neck. "Where are you going?" he demanded, equal parts angry and alarmed. "Are you going away?"

"I don't…I don't know," she said. She cupped his chin in her hand and pressed a kiss to the corner of his pouting little mouth. "I don't know, precious, but that's why I'm writing the letters. It's just in case."

Kurt hugged her tightly, burying his face in her shoulder. "I don't want you to go," he said. "Please don't go, Mommy. Don't go."

She hugged him back, her throat painfully tight, and rocked him gently. He hid his face from her, and she was glad. She didn't want him to see her cry.

[belleandkurtbastian]

Francey and Mollie Cockblock

Disclaimer: Glee, its characters and their backstories, and its locations are the property of Ryan Murphy and Fox.

OC Disclaimer: Francey Anderson and Mollie Hummel are the property of Keitorin Asthore (redbullandcupcakebatter on Tumblr).

Rating: T, approaching M

Warnings: Nearing M/M smut. But it's Klaine. And I cockblocked... well... Mollie and Francey did.

Synopsis: Kurt and Blaine think they have time for "a little something-something"

A/N: YAY ONE MORE KEITORIN ASTHORE OC STORY FOR TONIGHT

[rofro05]

Hurt Kurt Drabble

Caitlin wrote a lovely drabble the other day http://redbullandcupcakebatter.tumblr.com/post/30944037991/the-main-one-is-mollie-and-burt-are-pretty-occupied  

and I started writing this where her's left off. Mollie and the other three Hummel Kids all came from her brain. This is the first ~2500 words of my thing.

The streets flew by as Burt sped towards the hospital. He grit his teeth and clutched the wheel as he silently begged for the car to go faster and get them to St. Rita's sooner.

He fought to keep his eyes on the road and not on Mollie and Kurt. But every time Kurt let out another heartbreaking sob it was all that Burt could do to keep himself focused.

It took less than ten minutes to make the drive that normally took at least twenty from the high school. Burt pulled up to the ER entrance and parked crookedly. He jumped from the car at grabbed a wheelchair. When he wasn't able to pull Kurt away from Mollie, he just helped her up and settled them both in the chair.

The three of them were met at the door by a greeter who ushered them to the desk. With shaking hands Burt wrote Kurt's name and birthday on the sign in sheet that the receptionist thrust in his hands even as a nurse whisked them back into triage.

One of the nurses pulled him aside as the other two attempted to pull Kurt far enough away from his mother to check his vitals. “What happened?” She asked in a calm, measured voice.

“He didn't come home.” Burt tried to match the nurse's tone even as his own voice cracked with emotion. “And we went looking for him and he was locked in the equipment shed outside the high school. He hasn't said anything to us since we found him but someone really hurt him.”

One of the nurses wrapped a hospital bracelet around one of Kurt's thin wrists while the other wrapped a blanket around his shoulders before she started to bandage his bleeding wounds.

“We're going to take him back to the Pediatric Pod and get the doctor to look at him right away.” The nurse explained even as they started to push Kurt and Mollie towards the back. She held him back a little. “If you think that he was attacked, we'll need to call the police.

A sudden weight settled on Burt's shoulders all he could do was nod his agreement before following his family back through the ER.

It wasn't easy to move Kurt from the wheelchair to the narrow bed that the nurses parked him next to. But after a few tense moments he was on the bed and Mollie was helping change him into a hospital gown. But Kurt only settled back down when Mollie sat on the bed next to him so that he could clutch at her legs.

The doctor rushed in and began looking Kurt over with a frown. She felt along his limbs and torso before turning his head to look in his eyes with a pen light. “Kurt can you tell me what happened?” She asked gently as she manipulated his arms.

The only answer that she got was a weak cry as Kurt tried to turn back to the comfort of his mother.

“Please KK.” Mollie pleaded. “It's OK now. The doctor needs you to answer so that she can help you.”

Burt could see the tears that Mollie was fighting back as she smoothed Kurt's hair. But Kurt remained silent. The doctor waved him over and Burt stood next to her with his arms crossed. As she stood there the nurse fit some kind of mask over Kurt's mouth and nose before adjusting dials and starting to attach other monitors.

“I'm Dr. Zee.” she said quickly. “The nurse told me you believe that Kurt was attacked.”

“That's right.” Burt agreed. “But all we really know is that Kurt didn't come home from school. We knew that he had never stayed out like that before but we just thought that he was being a kid. But when we went looking for him we found him locked in that shed...” he trailed off as emotions threatened to overwhelm him.

“Well we need to run some tests so that we can see what's going on.” Dr. Zee explained. “I want to take some x-rays as well as a CT scan of Kurt's head. I'm also concerned that he's colder than he should be. Hypothermia might be part of the reason that he is so unresponsive. We'll start an IV to give him some fluids as well as take some blood. We're also giving him some oxygen since his saturation is lower than I want it to be. I'd also like to give him some medication to help him calm down. I don't want to sedate him, but the tests will be easier if he's a little more relaxed.”

Somehow Burt stammered out some kind of agreement and the doctor left the room. He sank into the chair next to Mollie's knee. Both of them could do nothing but sit there and watch the hitching movement of Kurt's chest.

Before Burt could work up the energy to say anything the nurse with the pink scrubs was back. “My name is Katie. I'm going to get Kurt's IV started so that he'll be ready for radiology.” She explained quickly.

Kurt wasn't fond of needles on the best of days. At first when the nurse straightened his arm he just lay there huddled next to Mollie's knees. But with the first press of the needle he let out an anguished wail and pulled his arm away.

“I'm going to need you to help hold him still.” The nurse said gently as she beckoned Burt over. “I think it will be better of you and mom can do it than if I have to call more strangers in.”

Without responding Mollie hunched over Kurt to press his face against her thigh while also holding his shoulder down. Burt sat on the other side of the gurney and wrapped Kurt's hand in his own.

“Alright mom and dad.” The nurse started. “I think we can finish this really quickly.”

This time when she pressed with the needle Kurt jerked but couldn't pull away. So instead he just cried harder. But after a second the nurse was done.

“I've got the medicine that Dr. Zee ordered.” Katie explained as she injected two syringes into the port of Kurt's IV. “It should only be a few minutes before the tech is in with to do the x-rays.”

Suddenly the three of them were alone again. Burt could see the outline of Mollie's profile in the corner of his eye. He could tell that she was barely holding it together even as she leaned over and gently smoothed Kurt's hair and hummed absently.

Of course they loved all of their children, but Kurt would always be their baby. Their baby that came into the world as a fighter when he was born early, who had fought to be who he was going to be since he could walk. Burt just hoped that Kurt still had enough fight left in him to get through this.

For the next few minutes Kurt cries slowly began to taper off under his mother's administrations. Burt still clutched Kurt's hand in his, carefully as through he were sheltering something fragile and incredibly valuable.

“Do you think that we should call Quinn?” Mollie asked as she looked over with tear laden eyes.

“We'll have time when they do that scan the doctor was talking about.” Burt answered in a low voice, not wanting to disturb Kurt before it was necessary.

Before they could continue there was a knock on the door before another girl came in pushing a big machine of some kind.

“I'm Diane, from x-ray.” She said. “Kim and I are going to take the views that Dr. Zee ordered.”

Even as she talked she pushed the machine into the room and next to the bed. Burt gave Kurt's hand a squeeze and laid it down on the bed so that he could move out of the way.

“Katie told me that Kurt has been a little upset.” Diane continued as she adjusted things.

“He doesn’t do very well when I move.” Mollie said in a low voice. Burt could tell that she was going to tear into this girl of she suggested that Mollie leave.

“Is there any chance that you could be pregnant?” Diane asked as she picked up a lead apron from the side of her cart.

“No. There isn't.” Mollie answered.

“Then there isn't any reason that we can't keep you as close to Kurt as possible.” Diane reassured. “We may have to move you around a bit, but as long as you wear an apron you'll be fine. And we definitely want to keep Kurt as calm as possible.”

Before they could get started, Katie stuck her head back into the room. “Mr. Hummel, we need to see you in the hall.”

Figuring that at least he would be out of the way in the hall, Burt just nodded and followed her around the corner from Kurt's room. Next to the sign marked family room stood two police officers. Burt felt his heart clench but he walked over to the officers.

“Mr. Hummel, my name is Detective Tate and this is Officer Jones. I've already sent a team to the High School, but I wanted to talk to you about what happened tonight.”

The Detective was a rather short woman. She gestured for Burt to follow her into the family room where they all sat down and she pulled out a small tape recorder.

“Kurt was supposed to pick the other kids up from school and daycare today, but he never did.” Burt started, his mouth feeling suddenly dry. “But then he didn't show up for supper either and Friday is our family night.”

“Is it typical for Kurt to break curfew?” the detective asked.

“No, but we just figured that he was being a kid.” Burt explained. “I was upset and everything, but we just thought that he was with his friends and lost track of time. But then it got late and he wasn't answering his phone. And he never ignores it when we call him. He's a really responsible kid.”

“What did you do then?” Detective Tate asked.

“We decided to go and look for him and Quinn Fabray, one of the neighbor kids said that he was still at school when she left so we started there. When we pulled up the school was dark, but Kurt's car was still there in the parking lot. I knew something bad had happened.”

For a moment Burt could not continue. The detective seemed to understand because she didn't even ask another question, choosing to give him a moment.

“Mollie and I split up to look around the school. I heard her scream for me and when I ran up she was sitting on the ground holding Kurt and he was so beat up. He had been locked in the equipment shed, probably since school let out and no one noticed.”

“It there anyone that you think would attack Kurt?”

Burt let out a bitter laugh. “Get a roster of the jocks at that school. They all give Kurt a hard time.”

“Well Mr. Hummel, we will need to talk to you again later. And eventually I'll need to speak to Kurt. Hopefully he can tell us who did this once he feels a little better. But for now I know that you need to get back to your family.”

Detective Tate pocketed her tape recorder and opened the door for Burt. He just nodded and headed back towards Kurt's room.

[sirwestaytay]

Oh hey there. ;)

[queer-bookwyrm]

So, my nerdy self loves Fanfiction and one of my favorite authors posted this most adorable one-shot of Kurt and his mom. I felt that I should share it with you kids. It made me smile and feel all happy bubbly inside on this gloomy day.

Born This Way-Keitorin Asthore Summary: Kurt knew from a very young age that there was nothing wrong with him at all. His mother made sure of that. Oneshot. COMPLETE.

[molliehummel]

The two five-year-olds stared daggers at each other. "Thtop it, Rachel!" Kurt said, stamping his foot. "You're not the both!"

"I am so the boss," Rachel said. She jammed her hands on her hips and glared at him. "My daddies tell me I'm the boss, and so that means that you can't be Ariel. I want you to be Sleeping Beauty, 'cause your hair's the right color. Lucy has to be Ariel, 'cause she's got red hair."

Lucy raised a hand meekly. "I wanna be Mulan," she said. "Kurt can be Ariel."

"I wanna be Ariel!" Kurt wailed. "Thleeping Beauty ith tho boring. She jutht thleeps!"

"No, I'm the boss, and you have to do what I say," Rachel said firmly. "I'm Belle, you're Sleeping Beauty, Lucy is Ariel, and Blaine is the prince."

Blaine frowned. "Which one?"

"All of them."

"Do I get a name?"

"No."

"What about me?" Finn said. "You said I can play!"

Rachel reached up on tiptoes and patted the top of his head. "You can be our pony," she said kindly.

Finn stared at her, gap-toothed mouth agape, and stomped away. "I'm not playing anymore!" he hollered over his shoulder.

"But you have to!" Rachel called. "Now we don't have a pony! Princesses need ponies!"

"I wanna be Ariel!" Kurt screeched. "You can't tell me what to do! I'm gonna tell! I'm gonna tell my mama on you!"

He spun on his heel and ran away, back towards the benches where the parents sat. Rachel's mouth dropped open. "No! Kurt! I'm sorry!" she yelled, running after him. "Kurt! Don't you know what 'I'm sorry' means? It means don't tell your mommy!"

Kurt, already on the brink of a frustrated temper tantrum, wasn't really paying attention to where he was going. He ran as fast as his little legs could carry him towards the safety of his mother, but he skirted a little too close around the edge of the park's pond, and the toe of his sneaker caught in a thick patch of weeds. With a sudden surprised yelp he tumbled into the cold water, splashing down face first.

Rachel skidded to a halt and stared at him in terror. "I didn't do it!" she screamed.

Kurt scrambled to sit up in the shallow water, his clothes streaked with mud and his wet hair plastered to his forehead. He took a deep shuddering gasp of a breath and burst into terrified tears, burying his face in his hands.

Blaine ran over and hopped into the shallow water feet first. "It's okay!" he said, grabbing Kurt's hands. "You're okay, get up!"

"I w-want m-my m-mommy!" Kurt sobbed, his shoulders hitching.

"I know," Blaine said, bending over him and patting the top of his wet head. "It's okay. Here, wanna hold my hand?"

He held out his hand with a hopeful smile. Still crying helplessly, Kurt blindly latched onto Blaine's fingers and allowed him to tug him to his feet. "It's okay," Blaine soothed, squeezing Kurt's hand. "You're just wet. Wet's not too bad, right?"

"I'm wet and c-cold!" Kurt wailed. He pulled his hand out of Blaine's grasp and stood in the middle of the pond in abject defeat, still sobbing. "I wanna go home! I want my mommy!"

Blaine patiently took Kurt's hand again and waded out of the pond, dragging the smaller boy behind him. "See? Now you're out of the pond and you're okay," he said, petting the top of Kurt's head.

"Zachary Blaine Anderson! Why are you all wet?"

Blaine looked from his wide-eyed big sister down to his soaked socks and sneakers. Even the hem of his shorts were wet. "Um…"

"Rachel made Kurt cry and he ran away to tell his mama and he fell in the pond and Blaine went and got him," Lucy reported.

Rachel pushed Lucy, knocking her backwards into the grass. Lucy let out a startled wail. "You told on me!" Rachel accused, and she started to cry.

"Mama's gonna be mad when she sees that you got all wet," Francey warned, and Blaine's lower lip began to tremble.

Finn ran over to them, leading a whole swarm of parents behind him. "What on earth is going on?" one of Rachel's daddies asked.

Kurt's pretty mama ran over to him; he lifted his arms up to be held and started to cry harder. She took off her cardigan and wrapped it around him, then picked him up and cuddled him close. "It's all right, baby, it's all right," she crooned, patting his back as he sobbed into her shoulder, clearly not minding that he was soaking her dress with dirty pond water. "Mama's here, honey. Mama's here."

"She pushed me!" Lucy said, hiding behind her mother's legs and pointing furiously at Rachel.

"It's not my fault, she tattled!" Rachel cried.

Blaine's lower lip continued to wobble. "I just wanted to help Kurt," he told his big sister, clinging desperately to her hand. "I'm sorry. Please don't be mad."

"I'm still confused," Rachel's other daddy said, looking from one hysterical kindergartener to the next. "What happened?"

Finn cleared his throat. "Rachel was bossing Kurt around," he explained. "Kurt was gonna go tell his mommy, and he fell in the pond when he was running, and so he was crying and stuff, so Blaine went to help him, and then Blaine's sister was mad that he was wet, and he started crying, and Lucy told her what happened, and then Rachel got mad and pushed Lucy, and Lucy started crying, and then Rachel yelled 'cause Lucy tattled and then she started crying." He took a deep breath and beamed proudly at the adults. "I'm not crying, though!"

"Good job, honey," his mom said, patting his head and looking like she was trying very hard not to laugh.

Rachel's daddies knelt down to look at her. "Princess, were you trying to be the boss again?" the taller daddy asked.

She dug the toe of her mary jane shoe into the grass. "Nooooo," she said slowly. He raised an eyebrow and she sighed. "But I knew what we should do! They just wouldn't listen to me!"

The other daddy picked her up. "Rae-Rae, we're going to have a long talk when we get home about being bossy," he said.

She sighed. "Another one?" she said.

"I'm really sorry about this," the tall daddy said to Kurt's mommy.

"Oh, these things can happen," she said, resting her cheek against the top of Kurt's head. "Little kids are like this. I'm sure they'll be best friends again tomorrow."

"Mommy, I wanna go home," Kurt sniffled.

She hugged him tightly. "I think that's a good idea," she said. "How about a nice warm bath and some comfy jammies, hm?"

He wiped his runny nose with the back of his hand. "And hot chocolate?" he said. She nodded and kissed his cheek. He gave a last shuddery half-sob. "Mommy, can I thay goodbye to Blaine before we go? He thaved me."

"Yes, KK, you can say goodbye to Blaine," she said.

She set him down on the ground. He drew his mother's sweater around his shoulders like a little prince's cape and walked over to Blaine, his shoes squelching noisily. "Thank you for thaving my life, Blaine," he said solemnly.

Blaine knotted his hands behind his back and ducked his head, his cheeks pinking. "You're welcome," he said shyly. He looked up suddenly. "Maybe we-"

But Kurt had leaned in just that second to give him a thank-you kiss on the cheek, and as Blaine turned his head, he ended up kissing the corner of his mouth instead. Both little boys hopped back in startled surprise.

"You kissed me!" Blaine said, shocked.

"No, you kithed me!" Kurt said. He whirled around. "Mommy! Do Blaine and I hafta get married now? Becauthe in all the printheth movies, when the printh and printheth kith, it meanth they're married!"

Blaine frowned. "You don't want to marry me?" he asked, eyes narrowing. "Why not? What's wrong with me?"

"There'th nothing wrong with you, I jutht think I'm too young to be married right now!" Kurt retorted. He flung his arms around his mommy's legs. "Mommy! Tell me! Do Blaine and I hafta get married?"

Kurt's mommy looked like she was having a very hard time not laughing. "You're too young to be married," she reassured him, her blue eyes dancing. She picked him up and set him on her hip. "What about when you're older?"

Kurt stopped to ponder this. "Maybe," he said. " I hafta think about it. Maybe when I'm older."

Blaine nodded seriously. "Okay," he said. "Are you coming to play tomorrow?"

Kurt looked hopefully at his mother. She nodded. "Uh-huh," he said, wrapping his arms around his mother's neck. "But tomorrow I better be Ariel. You can be Printh Eric, okay?"

Blaine brightened. "Okay!" he said.

"We'll see you later, Blaine," Kurt's mommy said, patting his cheek. "Say goodbye to your boyfriend, Kurt."

Kurt blushed rosy red. "He'th not my boyfriend, Mommy!" he protested. She laughed and walked back to their car, carrying him on her hip. Blaine waved goodbye.

Kurt leaned over his mother's shoulder. "Bye, boyfriend," he mouthed, waving back.

Blaine turned scarlet, grinning from ear to ear.

(Art by Ripaille)

[molliehummel]

Blessing

Blaine sat down carefully in the soft early spring grass and set down his small bouquet of yellow rosebuds. The pale gray marble was beautifully polished and there were no weeds to be found around the plot. He sat there for a moment, studying the stone, his hands knotted in his lap.

She could practically see the thoughts racing through Blaine's mind, the words for his simple speech falling into orderly lines. This was a long time coming; she had been waiting for this from the first time her son brought her boyfriend to visit her.

"Hi, Mrs. Hummel," Blaine said at last. "It's Blaine."

He toyed with the cuffs of his shirt. "I've already talked to Burt about this, and he's all for it," he said. "And Carole and Emily. They're so excited. But…I feel like I need to ask you too, before I went through with it."

She pressed her hands to her mouth, the warmth of happy tears already burning behind her eyes.

"I love your son," Blaine said simply. "I love Kurt so much. I love…the way he talks with his hands when he gets excited, and the way his eyes crinkle in the corners when he smiles. I love him when I find him sleepwalking in the living room, and when he wakes me up in the middle of the night because I won't stop grinding my teeth, and when he gets mad at me for forgetting to check if the dishwasher is clean before I put more dishes in."

She laced her fingers together and rested her chin on her knuckles, listening in rapt attention, wishing she could answer.

"I love him," Blaine said. "I can't imagine ever being without him. And…with your permission, I want to ask him to marry me."

He pulled a small black velvet box out of his jacket pocket. "Burt gave me your wedding ring," he said softly. "They resized it to fit, and…it's not like the Tiffany rings that Kurt's been looking at online when he thinks I'm not paying attention, but I think he'll like it just the same."

If she could still cry, she would have. She had loved her wedding ring. It was a simple white eternity gold band inlaid with tiny little diamonds- a lot more than Burt should have spent, but he had known how much she would love it. And now, here was her ring, the little symbol of her husband's love for her, and now her son would wear it, to show the world how much he was loved.

Blaine closed the box. "I just hope…that it's okay with you," he said.

She leaned forward and placed her hand on his shoulder. He couldn't feel it. Blaine just sat there a little while longer, running his fingertips along the edges of the rose petals, before sliding the box back in his pocket and getting up quietly.

Mollie watched him leave, unable to follow.

[redbullandcupcakebatter]

just remembered that May 12th is my personal headcanon date for the death of Kurt's mother.

rlakjldkfjkdsjfsld.

now I have a sad.

(In my headcanon she died on May 12, 2002, a month after Kurt's eighth birthday. And I have a full and complete headcanon about how she died. And now I am SO SAD.)

[molliehummel]

One in Four

"Ugh, I'm so glad to be home," Mollie sighed, rubbing her cheek as the truck pulled into the driveway, headlights bouncing off the garage door.

Burt grinned and cut the engine. "I bet Kurt will be excited to see us," he said. "Especially when he sees all the presents we got him."

Mollie laughed as she got out of the car. "You spoil him," she said.

"He's our only kid, Moll, I can't help it," Burt shrugged. "Here, you go on in. I'll get our stuff from the back."

Mollie headed up to the front door, her keys already in her hand. Burt reached into the backseat to get out their suitcases and bags. He was already looking forward to being home, to sitting in his own living room with a game on TV and his son playing on the living room floor and his wife humming as she made dinner in the kitchen. Mollie had really wanted to go on this trip- they'd never gone on a real vacation in the past four years of marriage- and it had been fun to go away for a few weeks, but he had to admit that he belonged in Ohio, in their little yellow house in the suburbs and his respectable blue-collar job. It had been exciting at first to travel around, especially watching how excited his wife got, but he liked his quiet, uneventful life just fine.

He leaned out of the car, Mollie's wheeled suitcase in his hand, to see a tall figure brush past him and get into the sedan parked on the curb. Burt frowned. That had to have been Mollie's old school friend, the one who had offered to babysit Kurt while they were gone. Strange that he didn't wait to say goodbye.

The sedan revved loudly and peeled off down the quiet dark street, and Burt hoisted the luggage up the front walk and into the house. Mollie had already kicked off her shoes and draped her coat over the rack by the door. "That your friend who just left?" Burt asked.

Mollie nodded. "He told me he had somewhere to be, but he said Kurt was absolutely perfect the whole time we were gone," she said. "He even said that he was the best he'd ever had."

Burt dropped the suitcases in the foyer and nudged the door shut with his heel. "Where'd you know him from, again?" he asked.

Mollie pulled the hair tie off her wrist and pulled her long strawberry-blonde girls up in a messy bun. "From college," she said, pulling the elastic tight. "We were in a few classes together. He got his degree in early childhood development. He was the director of a daycare up in West Virginia for a while." She went over to the kitchen and opened the fridge, reaching for the gallon of milk. "Funny, I hadn't seen him for years until I ran into him at that educator's conference in Dayton last month."

"Think he might want to babysit Kurt some other time?" Burt asked.

Mollie shook her head. "He told me he's catching a flight tonight; he's got an interview in the morning at a school in South Carolina," she said. She unscrewed the cap on the milk jug and recoiled. "Ugh, it's spoiled." She turned on the faucet and poured out the sour milk into the steady glug of water. "That's strange. Usually Kurt drinks us out of milk within a few days."

"Your friend probably let him have nothing but soda for two weeks," Burt said.

Mollie rolled her eyes and dropped the empty jug in the recycling bin. "I'm going to go check on him," she said. "Apparently he went to bed at eight and he's been sound asleep since then."

She headed up the stairs to Kurt's bedroom and after a moment, Burt followed her. The door to his room was shut tight, the hand painted sign with his name on it just ever-so-slightly askew. Mollie eased the door open and peeked inside, Burt leaning over his shoulder.

Their four-year-old son was a little lump under a pile of blankets and comforters, the top of his head barely visible. The covers were rumpled, as if he'd been tossing and turning, and his favorite stuffed elephant was abandoned on the floor. Mollie picked it up with a smile, brushing fuzz off of Raleigh's well-loved head, and tugged the blankets back just enough to tuck it under Kurt's arm.

Burt frowned. Kurt's nightlight, the one in the shape of a little rocket, had been unplugged and set on the top of his bookshelf, much too high for a child as small as Kurt to reach. It didn't make sense. Kurt hated sleeping in the pitch-black.

He picked it up, brushing a week's worth of dust off the bulb, and plugged it in, sending a soft soothing glow around Kurt's bedroom. Mollie sat on the edge of his bed, smiling as she smoothed his hair away from his face and watched his slow, steady breaths.

Burt bent to kiss the top of his wife's head. "Let's let him sleep," he whispered.

Mollie smoothed Kurt's covers reluctantly, adjusting his elephant against his cheek and smoothing his blue baby blanket around him, and kissed his round cheek. She paused. "Burt, does he feel warm to you?" she asked.

Burt touched the back of his hand to Kurt's forehead. "No, he's just hot from sleeping under a bunch of blankets," he said. "Come on, let's go to bed."

He got their luggage from downstairs and dragged up to their room. Mollie had already changed into a soft pale blue lace cami and shorts, her waving hair still caught in a loose knot at the nape of her neck, and was humming to herself as she scrubbed her face clean at the bathroom sink. Burt grinned and sat down on the edge of the bed to take his shoes off.

Mollie had just rinsed off her toothbrush and dropped it in the holder on the side of the sink when they heard it. Burt's blood ran cold. "Why is Kurt-" he started to say, but Mollie had already slammed the door open and was running down the hall.

Kurt screamed at the top of his lungs, high-pitched and uncontrolled. Burt followed his wife down the hall and hit the lights in Kurt's bedroom. His little son was thrashing back and forth on the bed, kicking his legs wildly. His ankle caught the cord of his bedside lamp and pulled it to the floor, shattering it into a dozen jagged-edge pieces.

"Hey, hey, Kurt, calm down," Burt said, reaching out a hand to steady his little boy. Kurt's eyes flew open as Burt touched his back and his terrified scream spiraled higher; he slapped at Burt's arm wildly and bit down hard on his wrist.

Burt recoiled sharply as Mollie pushed past him and tried to calm Kurt down. "Baby, it's okay," she called over his shrieking. "Baby, it's me. It's Mama."

Kurt still screamed in terror, his face turning blue from effort and lack of oxygen. Mollie climbed onto the bed beside Kurt and leaned over him, stroking his hair desperately. "Wake up, sweetheart, wake up," she begged. "It's okay. It's just a bad dream. Mama's here. Mama will make it okay."

Kurt's unfocused eyes faded into blue and he gazed blearily up at her, his scream pausing for a split second. Mollie smiled encouragingly at him, still smoothing his hair and resting her hand against his heaving little chest. "It's Mama, precious," she said. "Just Mama and Daddy."

Kurt bolted upright, his shrieking turning to hysterical sobs in a flash. He threw himself into Mollie's arms, crawling onto her lap and locking his arms around her neck in a death grip as if he could save himself if he only held on tightly enough. Mollie held him close and rocked him gently, tucking her hand up the hem of his shirt to stroke the soft skin of his bare back.

"Mama's here," she singsonged in a hushed sweet voice. "Mama's here. Mama will make all the bad things go away. The bad dream's over. It was just a dream, honey. Just a dream."

Burt stood a little ways back, still frozen in shock and horror. The marks where his son's sharp little teeth had sunk into his wrist oozed blood sluggishly, garishly red against his tough skin. He watched in a daze as Mollie rocked their son in her arms like a baby, draping his blanket around him and tucking his elephant in his arms to soothe him. Kurt's sobs turned harsh and rasping as he wore himself out, until he was hiccupping into his mother's neck, his small knuckles still stark white as he gripped onto the thin silky fabric of her pajamas.

"Do you want to come sleep in Mommy and Daddy's room tonight?" Mollie said. Burt saw his son nod vigorously, clinging to her desperately with his face hidden in her shoulder. Mollie lifted him in her arms, pressing kisses to his cheeks and nose and forehead.

She moved past Burt without noticing him, her eyes only on her frightened child. "You're safe, baby," she crooned as she carried him down the hall. Burt watched her walk away from him, her slim bare feet sinking into the soft pile of the carpet and the hallways lights gleaming in her curling hair. "You're safe, Kurt. As long as Mama's here you're safe. Nothing can ever hurt you when Mama's with you. I won't let anything hurt you."

Burt saw her carry Kurt into their room and set the child carefully down on the bed before crawling beside him, pulling the blankets over them both as he huddled in the safety of her side, and a strange sick feeling of foreboding made the pit of his stomach sink.

Kurt had never acted like this, even in the worst throes of a nightmare. Kurt had never been so violent. Kurt had never screamed till his face turned blue, not even as a colicky baby.

Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong.

Special thanks to SwingGirlatHeart for letting me borrow her verse.

[molliehummel]

Fairy Tales

"…and so the prince took Cinderella back to his castle and they lived happily ever after," Mollie read. "The end." She brushed an airy kiss on the top of her six-year-old son's head, his soft hair still damp from his bedtime bath. He nestled closer, wiggling his little toes in his blue footie pajamas. "And now it's time for little boys to be in bed."

She closed the book and hugged Kurt tightly. Kurt frowned and wriggled out of her grip. "Wait, wait. Then what, Mommy?" he asked.

"Then what what?" she asked.

Kurt sat down facing her, his small hands holding onto his blanket. "Then what?" he repeated. "What happened after they went to the castle?"

Mollie blinked. "They got married, I suppose," she said.

"Then what?" he pressed.

"Well, I don't know, Kurt, maybe they-"

"Did Cinderella go to college?" he inquired.

"Well, she-"

"What did her wedding dress look like?"

"Probably-"

"Did they have babies? Did they get a puppy? Did the stepsisters ever come to visit? What about the stepmother? Did they-"

Mollie covered Kurt's little mouth with her fingertips. "Hold on, chatterbox," she smiled. She gathered him up and set him on her knees facing her. "Cinderella went to college and got with a degree in textile merchandising, and waited to marry the prince until after she graduated because that is entirely more practical than getting married during school. They had a small but very pretty wedding, and Cinderella had a white lace dress but no glass slippers, because Prince Charming accidentally knocked one of them over and broke it. Then they moved into a very nice starter castle and adopted a puppy from the shelter."

"What did they-" Kurt began.

"They named him…um, Spot," Mollie interrupted. "And then they had three children, two boys and a girl, and the prince became the king after his father died and Cinderella ruled with him as his queen and they raised their children to be smart and kind and polite, and to always eat their vegetables at dinner."

Kurt, who had been caught hiding green beans under his napkin that very night, squirmed sheepishly.

"The stepmother and stepsisters were invited to visit, but they were too embarrassed after how they treated Cinderella so they moved to…Las Vegas and were never heard from again," Mollie finished. "There. Does that answer all of your questions?"

"For now," Kurt said. He snuggled closer and rested his head on her shoulder. "Will you read me Sleeping Beauty tomorrow night please?"

"I'll let your daddy read to you tomorrow," she grinned, rubbing his back.

[molliehummel]

Mollie Solves the Chandler Fiasco

Mollie rubbed her temples and turned to her son. "All right, let me run through it one more time," she said. "You were texting another boy and hiding it from Blaine."

Kurt bit his lip.

She turned to her son's boyfriend. "And you, instead of discussing it rationally after you'd calmed down a little, sang a song that led Kurt to believe you were dumping him publicly," she said.

Blaine flushed red all the way up to his ears.

Mollie sighed. "Lord have mercy," she sighed. She sat up and rested her folded hands on the table. The two boys stared at her, wide-eyed, their cups of warm milk cooling in front of them. "All right. Let me see. Kurt." She pointed at her son. "Shame on you for investing in another boy."

"I wasn't flirting with him!" Kurt protested. "He was just-"

"You were spending more time texting him than spending with Blaine and fixing your relationship," she said firmly. Her son's crystalline blue eyes welled up and she resisted the urge to cup his cheeks in her hands and coo over him till he stopped crying. If he was going to make her fix his grown-up problems, then dammit, she had to treat him like a grown-up. "You were investing in your relationship with Chandler instead of investing in Blaine, whether you were flirting with him or not."

Kurt clamped his lips shut and sat back, his chin wobbling.

"And you, young man," she said, turning to Blaine. "You are emotionally constipated."

Blaine blanched. "I'm what?" he stammered.

"You are emotionally constipated," she informed him. "You don't talk to Kurt about what's bothering you. You just bottle it up and assume he'll figure things out."

"But I-"

"You can't treat Kurt like a mind reader," she said. She tucked her hair away from her forehead. "You two care deeply about each other, yes?"

They both nodded, still studiously avoiding each other.

"Then you need to put on your big-boy skivvies and deal with this," she said firmly. "You need to talk things over. Even the hard things. Pretending the hard things don't exist isn't going to make them go away or make them easier to handle."

She stood up and kissed Blaine on the forehead, then kissed Kurt on the cheek. "I am going to set the timer for twenty minutes. You two are going to talk to each other. Respectfully, and calmly. When I come back, you can choose to either continue to talk, or Blaine can go home and you can try talking again later. Either way, you are going to discuss this rationally and in-person, instead of letting it fester at school or blow up over social media."

She left the kitchen with one surreptitious squeeze to her son's arm and went into the living room. Burt glanced up from his mechanics magazine. "They're still fighting?" he whispered.

Mollie sank down beside him on the couch, tucking her feet underneath her. "Well, Blaine stopped shouting and Kurt stopped crying," she said. "They switched for a while- Blaine cried and Kurt shouted- and then they switched back, but by the time I'd gotten the story straight, they'd both calmed down."

"See, I thought we'd escaped this by not having any daughters," Burt mused.

Mollie elbowed him sharply in the side. "Burt!"

"What?" he said. "Usually guys don't…you know. Talk about their feelings."

"The world would be a much better place if men talked about their feelings instead of pretending they don't have any," Mollie said. She leaned her head on her shoulder. "You talk about your feelings."

"Only because you make me," Burt mumbled.

"I don't make you, I have just trained you well after the past eighteen years of marriage," she corrected. Burt laughed softly and kissed the top of her head.

When twenty minutes was up, she slid off the couch and went into the kitchen. "All right, boys," she said. "How are we doing?"

Her son and his boyfriend sat as close to each other as possible, their hands clasped tightly. "I think…I think we worked it out," Kurt said. He took a deep shuddering breath. "Oh my god, I've been an ass."

"No, I was too," Blaine said. He smoothed a strand of escaping hair away from Kurt's face. "We were both jerks."

"So we're done with the screaming and the crying and the accusations?" Mollie asked, arching an eyebrow. The boys nodded meekly.

"And you're not breaking up?" They shook their heads.

"Have we learned an important lesson about communication?" They nodded.

"Good. What would you like for dinner?"

[molliehummel]

Kurt Will Never Be an Olympian

"Oh lord," Burt said.

"Mm-hm," Mollie nodded grimly.

The two of them watched their small son zigzag across the soccer field in joyous abandon. He was the tiniest member of the team; his neon green jersey with HUMMEL emblazoned in black across his shoulders was at least two sizes too big.

"He's trying so hard," Burt offered.

"Mm-hm," Mollie said.

Kurt darted down the field, dodging the older, bigger players. He tried to kick the ball, but his cleats slipped out from under him and he fell on the muddy ground with a tremendous splash.

"He's terrible," Burt blurted out.

"He's awful," Mollie said. Her arms were folded across her chest, her lips thinned. "And if he catches a cold from running around out here when it's so wet and muddy…"

"But I don't understand," Burt said blankly. "He loves soccer. He's told me that at least once a day since we signed him up. He's always running around in the backyard, chasing down that ball."

"He only likes it because he thinks you like it," Mollie said quietly.

A knot formed in the pit of Burt's stomach. "But he…I thought…"

"He just wants to make his daddy proud of him."

Burt swallowed uncomfortably. "I am proud of him," he said.

Mollie picked at the cuffs of her coat. "You don't show it very often," she said. Her eyes were still trained on the little figure in neon green. "You pat him on the head, tell him he's a good kid. When he started playing soccer…you wanted to play with him in the backyard. You wanted to take him shopping for new cleats. You wanted to put his team picture up in your office."

Burt's blood ran cold. "Mollie, I-"

She turned to face him, her lovely sea-blue eyes gray and frosted. "Are you always going to be proud of your son, no matter what he does, or are you only going to be proud of him when he does what you want him to do?" Mollie said.

Burt fell silent.

They watched the game without talking, except for Mollie's occasional encouraging call when Kurt lagged behind or fell. Burt's chest ached at the determination in his little boy's face- jaw set, eyes narrowed, mouth tugged in a crooked frown. He looked just like his mother.

The ref signaled the end of the game and the other team started shrieking in delight. The troop of children in neon green slumped back to the stands, heads hanging low. Kurt ran up the metal bleachers to his parents, his cleats sliding on the stands. "Mommy! Daddy!" he called, huffing and puffing.

"Hey, scooter, careful," Burt said, catching Kurt's thin little arm before he slipped. His cheeks were flushed rosy red, but his skin felt icy cold, and his clothes and hair were streaked with damp mud from falling so many times.

"Did you see me, Daddy? Did you see me?" Kurt said. "Did you?"

"Daddy watched every second of your game, precious," Mollie assured him. She picked up an old fleece blanket from her bag and wrapped it around Kurt. "Baby, you're freezing. Are you okay?"

"I'm wet and kinda muddy," Kurt informed her. "Can I take a bath?"

She kissed the tip of his nose. "Of course, KK," she said.

"But I did good, right, Mommy?" Kurt pressed. "I was really good?"

"You did your very best," she said, smiling at him as she rubbed warmth back into his arms.

Kurt swiveled around to face Burt. "But Daddy, you're proud of me, right?" he begged. "I did good?"

He looked so anxious- too anxious for a little boy who wouldn't be five for another week. Mollie drew the blanket tighter around him as he shivered, and Burt's heart melted. "Baby, I'm always proud of you," he said, gathering Kurt into his arms. "You could paint yourself blue and I'd still be proud of you."

Kurt nestled his damp little head against Burt's shoulder and cuddled into his chest. "But I don't want to paint myself blue, Daddy," he said, perplexed. He reached up to latch onto Burt's collar, an old habit of his from babyhood. "Daddy, can we go home? I'm really muddy."

Burt kissed Kurt's small hand, his little fingers still twined in the collar of his shirt. "Yeah, we can go home," he said. He scooped Kurt up and set him on his hip. "Mommy can give you a bath, and we can eat dinner in the living room while we watch a movie. How does that sound?"

"I like that," Kurt said, his voice muffled as he rubbed his cheek against Burt's shoulder. He hugged his little boy tightly, watching the parents of Kurt's teammates console their miserable children with pats on the back and hugs, some of them clearly just as upset as their kids over the loss, and it slowly dawned on Burt that not only did Kurt not care about losing, but neither did he. Kurt just wanted to make him proud. And he just wanted his kid to be happy.

Kurt yawned hugely as Burt carried him over to the car, burying himself deeper in his fleecy blanket cocoon. "I think somebody's going to bed early tonight," Mollie said, patting Kurt's back. She smiled at Burt over Kurt's head, and he grinned back at her.

"Not me," Kurt yawned, still nuzzling his daddy's shoulder.

[molliehummel]

Chats

"Blaine, are you going to loiter around the mailbox like a creeper or are you going come in?"

Blaine started, his elbow slipping and hitting the horn of his Jeep. It bleated loudly and Mollie snickered. "That's not funny," he protested.

"Oh, yes it was," she said. She drummed her fingers lightly on the car door. "Coming inside?"

He sighed. "Yes, please."

He followed his boyfriend's mother up the front walk and into the house. "Did you really drive all the way over here just to gaze longingly at Kurt's house?" Mollie asked, holding the door open for him.

"Well, rehearsal ran late, and it was on my way home, and…it's weird, right?" he mumbled.

Mollie guided him gently into the warm, homey kitchen and made him sit down at the table. "Only a little," she said, smiling. "Here. I thought you might like this." She pressed a warm mug of milk into Blaine's hands and sat down across from him. "Are you doing all right, sweetheart?"

"I'm fine," he said, taking a sip of milk. She had sweetened it a little with honey and vanilla- the same way Kurt made it. "Senior year's going great. Glee club's going well. My midterms weren't too bad…"

"No, no, not school," Mollie chided gently. "How are you?"

He sighed. "Okay, I guess," he said.

She smiled, her blue eyes crinkling a little in the corners, just like her son's. "You guess?"

"My dad's been out of the country on business pretty much all month," Blaine said. "My mom is…I don't even know. Busy. And Francey's applying for medical school now that her undergrad is almost done."

"Closer, but not quite," Mollie said. She reached over and smoothed an errant curl away from his forehead in an unconscious, motherly gesture. "How are you doing? You yourself. Zachary Blaine."

He rubbed his temple. "Lonely," he confessed. "It's…it's not the same without him here. I thought…I mean, McKinley's all right, but I went there because I wanted to be with him. Now I feel like…I don't belong at McKinley, but I don't belong at Dalton anymore either."

"Between a rock and a hard place," she said. She reached over and squeezed his hand. "You know you're welcome here any time, right?" He nodded. She smiled, squeezing his fingers tighter. "Especially on Friday nights."

He smiled back at her, but his lips were a little wobbly. Mollie patted his hand. "I miss him too," she said softly.

[molliehummel]

Hatred

"Kurt?" Mollie called. Her heart skipped a beat as she shut the front door behind her. "Kurt, baby, I'm home." She set down her bag. "Where are you? Are you okay?"

She flexed her fingers anxiously. Her mind had been racing since she'd gotten the text from her thirteen-year-old son just an hour ago- soemthing happend pleas come home. She didn't know what that meant. Was he hurt, or sick, or-

She looked into the living room and found her son huddled on the couch, his hair dark and wet from a recent shower. He stared blankly at the TV screen, blue eyes unfocused and his chin resting on his bent knees. His slim hands were wrapped around his ankles, his thumbs fiddling with the hem of his too-long jeans.

"Kurt, what's wrong?" she asked.

He looked up, the color draining from his face. "I sent another text, you didn't need to come home," he said, his voice small. "It's silly."

She sat down beside him on the couch, wrapping her arms around him and drawing him against her. "It's not silly," she said "You're upset. What's wrong?" She kissed his temple. "What happened?"

He swallowed hard. She kissed his forehead; he didn't feel hot, so he wasn't sick. His jeans were loose and he was wearing one of his father's baggy old tee shirts, so maybe he was hurt- but probably not. She smoothed her fingers through his hair and waited for him to explain.

"Some of the bigger guys," Kurt started. He swallowed again, tucking his cheek tighter against the soft slope between her shoulder and collarbone- his spot, he used to say when he was a just a little thing. "Some of the football guys…they were throwing water balloons at me. When I was leaving school."

Her heart sank. She would prefer to have him sick or injured to this.

"It wasn't water, though," he whispered.

Her hand tightened against his upper arm. She hastily relaxed her fingers and kissed the top of his head, trying to reassure him.

"They peed in them," Kurt said in a tiny voice. "They peed in them, and they threw them at me, and…and I had to walk home like that, and it smelled, and I took a shower for like an hour and I still don't feel clean."

He burst into tears then, tears he'd obviously been holding back for a long time while he waited for her to come home, and Mollie seized him tightly, pulling him onto her lap. "Oh, baby," she whispered. "Oh, my baby, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry."

Kurt sobbed into his hands without making much sound, just ragged gasps that made his whole body shudder. Mollie rocked him gently like she had when he was just a fretful baby waking up from a nightmare. It didn't matter that he was thirteen years old, he was her little son and someone had hurt him.

"I'm so sorry," she kept repeating, rubbing his back. "It'll be okay. Sh. Sh, honey, don't cry. Sh, sh, sh."

He cried into her shoulder with all the painful exhaustion of a broken spirit, and she held him so tightly her arms began to prickle, her chest burning with sudden spiteful hatred at the boys who had dared to hurt her child.