Work Text:
“Candles burnin' low, lots of mistletoe, lots of snow and ice, everywhere we go, choirs singin' carols, right outside my door, all these things and more, that's what Christmas means to me my love…”
Kurt sang along quietly as he wrapped presents on his bed. Blaine had headed to the airport to pick up Burt and Carole while Kurt finished tidying up and cooking their dinner. He glanced over at the final present; this one wouldn’t be getting wrapped like the others – some handmade bowties and tickets to a football game for Blaine, a new cap and coat for his dad, and an emerald green cashmere sweater for Carole – a small, hinged green jewelry box. He smiled to himself as he popped it open to reveal the silver band that sat inside, snug against green satin cloth.
He already knew the answer to his question by the ring on his own finger, but he’d wanted to give Blaine his own little proposal and a conversation from his senior year, when Blaine had given him the gum wrapper promise ring, had sparked an idea.
Kurt tucked the ring back into his coat pocket and gathered his gifts into his arms to place under the tree. He and Blaine had decorated the tree a few weeks ago, while dancing to Christmas music and drinking some cheap wine that Cooper had gifted them when they moved in together.
Hearing the sliding door open, he quickly placed the gifts beneath the tree and went to greet his dad and Carole. The last year had been terribly tough on them all with the loss of Finn and he wanted to try and ease the pain of their first Christmas without him at least a little bit. And bringing them to New York was phase one. Allowing them to be there when he proposed to Blaine was phase 3… phases 2 and 4 consisted of lots of love, food, comfort and as much joy as he could give them.
“Merry Christmas, Dad!” he smiled as he hugged his dad tightly, feeling Burt’s arms hold him impossibly tight.
“Hey kid,” his dad grinned as they pulled apart and he stepped over to hug Carole tightly.
“Hey Carole.” He felt her relax in his embrace and breathe him in like any mother who hadn’t seen her child for some time.
“Hey kiddo.” She smiled when they pulled back and squeezed his cheeks. “I didn’t believe Blaine when he mentioned you’d lost some more weight, but look at you!”
Kurt laughed and playfully shoved Blaine as he moved over to him. “What have you been telling her?”
Blaine grinned, pulling Kurt to him and kissing him gently. “Nothing that isn’t true.”
Kurt rolled his eyes and headed to the kitchen to make coffee for everyone and Blaine took Burt and Carole’s suitcase into the spare bedroom. Once the coffee was brewed and he could hear his family chatting quietly, he took it into the living area and handed out cups to everyone, seating himself against Blaine’s side.
He glanced over at Carole and saw her watching him with a small smile on her lips. She winked and he smiled down into his coffee.
“Before we get lost in football, what’s the plan for today?”
Kurt smiled “Well, I was thinking we could go ice skating, take a walk by the Rockerfeller Christmas tree, see the lights, get some hot cocoa…” he trailed off with wink. “A real New York Christmas to set us up for the day before Christmas eve shopping tomorrow… because someone…” here he shot a look at Blaine, who rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out, “Has yet to finish his shopping.”
Carole laughed as she nodded her head “I had to drag your father to the mall yesterday to make sure we had everything.”
Kurt rolled his eyes. “Some things never change.”
—
When they arrived at the ice rink, Kurt was taken by surprise when the song he had been singing was blaring over the large overhead speakers.
“I see your smilin' face, like I never seen before, even though I love ya madly, it seems I love you more…the little cards you'll give me, will touch my heart for sure, all these things and more, darling, Whoa, that's what Christmas means to me my love…”
He caught Blaine’s hand in his and gave a gentle tug so he could wrap his arms around his neck and hold him as the rest of the song played out. Weirdly, this Christmas song had never really been on his list of favourite songs to play over the holidays, but this year, it seemed to be the one he kept going to, playing over and over again, humming on the subway and singing under his breath while cooking. It was everywhere, like it was the ghost of Christmases yet to come.
“I love you, Kurt,” Blaine breathed into the hug and Kurt felt a gentle kiss pressed to the underside of his jaw. “Fearlessly and forever, okay? I know this Christmas is hard, but you and me… I need you to know how solid we are, I don’t ever want you to –”
Kurt cut Blaine off by pressing his lips against Blaine’s and tightening his arms around his neck. When he felt Blaine relax and pulled back, he brought his left hand between them, the silver band sparkling in all the Christmas lights around them, and pressed his hand against Blaine’s chest.
“I know, Blaine, the ring you placed on my finger reminds me of that every day,” Kurt bit his lip and could feel Burt and Carole watching them curiously from the bench as they slid on their skates, distracted from the lights they had been enamoured with earlier.
“I erm. I was going to save this for a little later on, but I think now might be more appropriate,” he smiled and stepped back enough to make some space between them and reach into his front pocket. “I remember how I felt when you proposed – I’ve never forgotten it, this overwhelming, life affirming, forever kind of love that has never really gone away, I don’t want it to… but I got to thinking how selfish I was to keep it all to myself, I mentioned it to Carole and we agreed it’s maybe a feeling that comes from being proposed to. The love someone feels so much that they want to spend the rest of their life with you. And I thought how much love you must have for me that I feel so much like bursting all the time.,.” Kurt breathed deep to stop his voice from cracking and raised his hand between them and opened it up, offering a silver ring identical to the one Blaine had gifted him with.
He saw the moment Blaine clocked it, how his eyes bulged and filled instantly as he glanced between the ring and Kurt and back again.
Kurt smiled softly and gracefully dropped to one knee, he felt the ice rink grow silent as people around him realized what was going on, heard children’s squeals and Carole’s soft gasp, but nothing could pull his focus more than Blaine.
“I have loved you since the first time you grabbed my hand and dragged me down that corridor at Dalton. I was going to do this at home later, but I had the feeling you were going to beat me to the question again and I didn’t want you ruining your own surprise.”
Blaine laughed, voice choked and wet with tears and eyes sparkling.
Kurt smiled and reached for Blaine’s left hand and kissed the back of it gently. “Oh, Blaine Devon Anderson, I hope you know how much I adore you,”
Another choked sob from Blaine had him glancing up and almost letting go of his composure as Blaine beamed down at him.
“You feel it?” He asked quietly and saw Blaine nod quickly.
“Will you marry me, Blaine?”
“Oh my god, yes, Kurt.” Blaine gasped as he dropped to his knees and kissed Kurt firmly, his hands cupping Kurt's face. All sound seemed to return to Kurt and he was astounded to hear cheers of joy. The music playing from the speakers had changed and Kurt laughed to hear “Marry You” by Bruno Mars as the announcers shouted “Congratulations!”
Kurt pulled back slightly and slid the ring onto Blaine’s ring finger, before clambering back to his feet and helping Blaine rise as well. He glanced around at the beaming and cheering crowd and bashfully curtsied while Blaine laughed and raised their hands skyward.
As they turned back to face each other, Kurt saw Carole just seconds before her arms wrapped around the two of them and felt Burt join her on the opposite side. Through the tears from Carole and the laughter from his dad and the ebbing of the cheers, Kurt heard a throat clearing and glanced up to see a man holding a tray with four deluxe hot chocolates on it.
“I’m just sorry they’re not champagne!” he grinned. “Congratulations, I wish you all the love in the world.”
Kurt smiled and took the tray. “Thank you.”
The server smiled and nodded before Kurt felt Blaine’s arm wrap around his waist. He leaned into it as Blaine turned them gently into the fold of their family
“Surprise…” he beamed, and Carole rolled her eyes before she took the tray of hot chocolate from him and handed them out, Kurt moved out of Blaine’s arms but linked his arm through Blaine’s who was alternating between looking at his new ring and Kurt’s face with an expression of contentment.
Their eyes connected and Kurt smiled back as Burt cleared his throat and offered up his drink in a toast.
“To Kurt and Blaine.”
Carole clinked her cup to Burt’s and they held them aloft waiting as Kurt and Blaine laughed and clinked their glasses together.