Take it off now, girl, take it off now, girl. I wanna see inside. Would you let me see beneath your beautiful tonight?

The apartment door slams, startling Kate out of the stupor she was in at the table. She looks up from the sketches she was working on to see Blaire with a determined look on her face moving quickly towards her.

"We're going out tonight with friends," she says, leaning in to kiss Kate before continuing towards the bedroom.

"Wait, what?" Kate gets out as Blaire hurries through the bedroom door, leaving it open for Kate to follow through. Which she does, as she gets up from the chair and follows after her girlfriend. "Blaire? Excuse me?"

Blaire is already rifling through the closet, the sneakers she had worn to work toed off and lying haphazardly in the middle of the room. She stops and finally gives Kate her full attention. "What?"

"What's going on?"

"I made plans with a couple of friends to go out tonight. I really need a drink," she says, practically moaning out the last sentence. "And you're coming along."

Kate sighs as Blaire goes right back to the closet. "Blaire, honey, I don't think I can go with you." Her hair was a mess; the brown hair plopped on top of her head in an extremely messy bun. She hadn't taken the time to put on make-up or even put in contacts, the glasses she rarely uses on for once. "I'm really not ready to go out, and I also have work to finish up before Monday."

"Kate, come on," Blaire automatically groans, looking over her shoulder. "Just get ready, we have time. And you still have a couple days before Monday to finish it."

"No, really, Blaire. I have to finish this stuff and I've been working on it all day. I really don't want to mess this up. Not to mention that I'm not really in the mood for constricting clothes today, I haven't been feeling well." Which wasn't a lie. Her stomach had been bothering her and just the thought of putting on a pair of tight jeans or a tight dress makes her uncomfortable, so she settled for a baggy sweatshirt and sweatpants. Sweatpants that she was pretty sure were dirty...

Blaire hardly listens as she strips from her work clothes, pulling out a dark green strapless dress, a dress that Kate would never let Blaire wear without her being there. "Babe, come on. Come with me. I don't want to go alone, and I really have to let go for a night."

"No, I'm sticking with what I said. This work is really important to me." Kate almost turns back on what she said as she watches Blaire shimmy into her dress.

Rolling her eyes, Blaire gives Kate an angry look. "Are you kidding me? We haven't been out together in a long time and now that I actually want to go out, you turn me down? Whatever. Stay home alone."

Kate tips her head back, knowing that Blaire's irritation was just from stress from everything that's been going on with her parents and at work and the stupid show with the stupid diva actress who treats Blaire like crap; but that still didn't stop Kate from feeling slightly irritated herself. She wasn't going to put up with her stupid and childish antics right now. "Just, change your dress."

Blaire fixes her with a glare. "No. I want to have fun and you don't want to, so you don't have a say in anything. I'm a big girl, I can decide things for myself."

"Blaire, please. That dress is really revealing and I just—"

"Do you not trust me?"

Kate stops, gives Blaire a wide-eyed look. "What?"

"Do you not trust me? To not cheat on you? Is that why you don't want me to wear this? Because I know that people look when I wear this and I'm sure that's exactly why you don't want me to wear this. So you don't trust me not to cheat on you." Blaire's face contorts into a look of hurt. "Wow."

"Blaire, that isn't what I said. Don't say that. Of course, I trust you. Just...sometimes...when you're drunk—" Kate knows she said the wrong thing as Blaire's face falls.

"Wow." That's all she can get out as she stares at Kate, her cheeks flushing a deep red. "Just, wow." Then she's grabbing for a pair of heels, storming past Kate.

"Blaire—no, please, stop—" Kate tries, following after her, her voice overflowing with desperation.

"No, go back to your work. I can take care of myself, I'm an adult," she snaps back. "Don't worry about me."

"Honey...please...I didn't mean it that way," Kate begs, grabbing Blaire's wrist and tugging on it gently, trying to pull her into a hug.

"Oh, yeah, sure sounded like you didn't mean to tell me that you don't trust me. Four years, and I'm just finding this out?" Blaire's shaking, Kate can feel it with her hand still grasping tight to her wrist. "Let me go. I'll be back later. Maybe." Blaire tugs away her wrist and leaves the apartment just as quick as she came in, leaving Kate standing alone.

The last word Blaire snapped twists in her brain, making her begin to worry.

Maybe.

*

It had started raining over an hour ago, the wind blowing and slamming raindrops against the small windows of their apartment. The sun had disappeared from the horizon, darkness having settled down, adding a creepy effect to the howling of the wind and the sound of rain against surfaces.

Kate had spent the last few hours trying to calm herself down. Right after Blaire walked out of the door, she had sent messages to the few friends she knew would take Blaire out partying, just to make sure she'd be okay. Then she tried to settle down to draw and finish the sketches she had started earlier, which by the time she set down her pencil just turned into sketches of Blaire.

Her brain wouldn't stop the thoughts from constantly crossing her mind, the thoughts that Blaire had run into the wrong group of guys, or had got lost in some shady part of the city. Anything that could make a person worry was rushing through Kate's head. It was around the time that the rain had started to fall that she puy down her pencil and gave up on her work.

She knew she had said the wrong things, should have tried harder to keep her home or just went out with her. Kate knew that she messed up, and right at this moment there wasn't really anything she could do. She almost gave in and got dressed to go out too, but stopped knowing that Blaire probably wouldn't want to see her at this very moment; if she was lucky enough to have Blaire want to see her at all this night. So instead, she sat on the couch and turned on reruns of Say Yes to the Dress and hunkered down under a blanket.

Kate was just dozing off over the arm of the couch when the sound of the door opening rouses her. She blinks her eyes blearily for a moment, pulling the blanket closer against the cold as she sits up and looks towards the person standing in the doorway.

"O-Oh my god, Blaire." She was up in seconds, the blanket falling forgotten on the floor.

Blaire stands just inside the door, her hair plastered to her head, her entire body shivering and dripping with rain. Her heels were off and held in one hand, one of the shoes missing the heel. Blaire's face is blank, looking right at Kate. "I was just going to stay at a friend's. But...but they left me." She swallows. The corners of her mouth dip down quickly.

"Wait? They left you? Come in, get a blanket." Kate hurries forward before being stopped by Blaire ducking her head and shaking it.

"No. Please, don't touch me." Blaire's voice breaks as she says it, her fingers twitching around the shoes before letting them fall against the fake wood floor beneath her feet. "Th-they left me. My friends. They just...found people to go home with and left me at the club. And I—I was okay. But then, I realized that maybe I was wrong. Because no one was paying any attention to me and I actually...Kate, I wanted the attention." Blaire closes her eyes before blinking them open to meet Kate's worried ones.

"I wanted the attention," she repeats, her eyes full of sadness. "I wanted someone to walk by and hit on me and make me feel like if you left me, then I'd still have a chance. I wanted someone to walk by and wolf whistle and remind me why I was there alone, that I hadn't snapped for no reason. But no one did, they all ignored me."

"Honey..." Kate whispers, hurt twisting tight in her gut. The hurt didn't matter though, because Blaire looked two seconds from collapsing on the floor. "Just...come in. Let me help you into bed, you have to be really cold."

"That's why the producers didn't like me, isn't it?" Blaire questions quietly instead of listening to Kate. "I'm not good enough. I mean, that's what Darla tells me. That they picked her because they wanted a skinny, beautiful Elphaba that people would look at and be happy with. Which isn't what that part is about," she spits angrily.

"Blaire...Baby, please." Kate takes a hesitant step forward.

It's almost like Kate can see everything inside of Blaire, everything that is holding her up, suddenly crack and break loose.

"I'm not good enough for anyone, right?" Blaire suddenly says, her eyes suddenly ghosting over with tears. Her voice is broken and hurt as she looks up at the ceiling. "I'm not good enough for my parents because I'm in love with you and I won't go to Ohio and screw some rich guy to have his kids and carry on a good name. I'm not good enough for the producers because I'm not skinny enough and because this girl seems to have so much more talent than the girl from Ohio. And I'm not good enough for you because I can't give you everything you want, like a good house or a girlfriend who gets the good parts in Broadway shows or has parents that will love you just as much as they love her." She clenches her jaw, continues to try and hold back the tears.

Kate stays silent, but walks up to Blaire. "Please, don't say that stuff. Just...please."

"It's all true," Blaire whimpers, looking away from their cracked ceiling to the blue eyes that hold nothing but love, love for her, love for what they have together.

"Just—no. Stop talking, I'm begging you," Kate whispers, reaching out her hands to grab her shoulders. Then Kate is tightening her grip on her shoulders, pulling her in till their lips are crashing together. Blaire's breath hitches, sounding watery as she kisses back desperately, her hands fisting in the back of Kate's t-shirt.

Kate parts their lips, opening her eyes to catch Blaire's closed tightly. "Everything you said, everything is wrong. Every little thing you said," she murmurs, gently nudging their noses as their lips brush and catch.

Blaire's breath hitches again, and Kate quickly presses another long kiss to her lips. "You're too good for me, Kate, you are. I don't deserve you, or anything. I'm just a w-weak, pathetic girl who lets everyone down."

"You have never once let me down. You're perfect, Blaire, and I really wish I could convey to you how much I actually love you and want you to be happy."

"I just...I'm not, Kate, I'm not," Blaire hiccups, before finally just slipping and breaking down. A sob breaks from her lips, the tears flooding down her cheeks as she begins to cry. Kate doesn't hesitate to wrap her arm around her shoulder to pull her against her body.

"Darling, don't cry, no," Kate chokes out, her eyes stinging with warm tears as she kisses her lips and cheek and forehead and wherever her lips can reach. Blaire just lets out a broken sob, clutching Kate tighter. Her body shakes in Kate's arms, and Kate almost starts crying with her. But at this moment, it's Kate's turn to be strong and hold in the feelings that start to brim her eyes.

She had been waiting for this moment, waiting for the dam to break and let everything rush through, and she was just glad that it had happened right here, right now, instead of some strange place.

Without a word, Kate closes her eyes for a moment then begins to walk Blaire to the bedroom. Getting through the door, she quietly closes it and leaves Blaire standing in the middle of the room for a moment. She looks pitiful, her eyes and nose red and puffy, her hair drying and frizzing. Her dress was still tight against her, though it was slipping off of places, leaving her looking like a mess with makeup smears across her face. Blaire snivels and wipes at her face as best as she can.

Kate walks up to her and catches her wrists gently, watching as her large eyes blink open, wet and wondering. Her bottom lip quivers but Kate stays silent as she turns Blaire's wrist and places her lips against the inside. A soft breath escapes Blaire's lips, eyelids fluttering. "Blaire Anderson...You're my everything. You're beautiful...," Kate places a kiss higher up on her wrist, "You're wonderful...," another kiss, "You're literally perfect in every way and who ever makes you feel any less deserves to die in a big fiery pit."

Blaire chokes out a laugh.

"Okay, maybe not that violent, but baby," Kate lets go of her wrists and runs her hands up her arms. "What everyone else thinks doesn't matter. I love you and I think that's all that matters."

Blaire is still sniffling, so Kate leans in and kisses her soft and slow, dragging their lips together perfectly. "Please," Blaire whispers, her eyes closed even as Kate pulls away.

"Please what?" Kate questions her quietly.

"Make me feel better," Blaire answers softly.

Then Kate leans down to capture her lips again.