His handsome face lit up the instant Kurt swept into the coffee shop. His pulse quickening, Blaine straightened and was on his feet, drawing the countertenor into his warm embrace. "Hey," he started, sensing the tension in Kurt, "are you okay?"

When Kurt opened his mouth, he'd intended to say that he was just fine. The words were on the tip of his tongue, but before they could escape, his face fell and Kurt shook his head forlornly. "No," he answered quietly, slumping into his chair. He glanced around, suddenly realizing that having the discussion they needed to have in public - or at least so crowded a public place - wasn't really what he wanted to do. "Want to take a walk?"

Now Blaine was really worried. "Sure," he replied, still smiling as he reached for his coffee. Ordering one for Kurt, he then led the way out of the shop while reaching for his boyfriend's free hand. A warm tingle surged through his arm and rushed straight to his heart. "Kurt," he started, pausing and gazing into those beautiful eyes, "before you say anything, there's something I want to tell you." Without a moment's hesitation, Blaine said, "I love you."

Tears stung Kurt's eyes as he fought to think of the right thing to say. The truth was that he felt guilty for the thrill that went through him at the words. Shouldn't he have felt nothing at all? Wouldn't that be right if he was really meant to leave Blaine? Kurt bit his lip and looked down, trying to blink away the tears that threatened to spill over. "Oh, Blaine," he murmured under his breath. He would have killed to hear the words just a few days before. Were the events of the previous night really enough to wipe that away? "I... something happened last night..."

Blaine froze. Having imagined so many different ways this might have played out, none of them involved Kurt dissolving into heartbroken tears. His coffee cup shaking precariously, Blaine closed both hands around it and felt the warmth seeping into his numb palms. "Kurt," he started, clearing his throat when it thickened with emotion, "what happened? You can tell me... You can tell me anything... You know that, right?"

"I know," Kurt answered, sniffling again and forcing himself to look up at Blaine. It struck him in that moment that he felt as safe with Blaine as he did uncertain around Finn. When he looked at Blaine, he wanted to throw himself forward into his boyfriend's arms, beg forgiveness, and try to forget the whole thing. Could it possibly be worth screwing things up with Blaine when Finn might never even speak to him again? Kurt bit his lip and then forced himself to forge ahead. He had to tell Blaine either way. "Last night... the punch was spiked and Finn got a little tipsy so I took him outside," Kurt could tell he was hurrying along but couldn't bring himself to stop or slow down, "and then he kissed me and... and said he'd been thinking about me... and... we went back to the house and, um, kissed again but things got a little... it was too fast and... Finn walked out and I haven't talked to him since." Only then did Kurt finally let himself take a break and think about whether anything he'd said had even made sense. His hands gripped the coffee cup as if it were his sole anchor to reality.

Blaine listened in stunned silence, feeling as if he was being repeatedly sucker punched with every word. Something icy and sharp plunged into his heart, which quickly sank like a stone. He wasn't even aware of the coffee cup he'd been holding with both hands slipping and falling until it was too late. The clattering of the paper cup rebounding off concrete shocked him back to reality. His first instinct was to track down Finn and pummel his brains out. Drunk or not, what the hell was he thinking?

Blinking at Kurt, Blaine opted instead to stay right there with him. A small part of him was terrified of leaving and never seeing Kurt again. "Kurt," his voice quaked, "are you okay?" He reached out, resting his hands on the other teen's shoulders. "Did he hurt you?"

Kurt was struck dumb for a moment by the fact that Blaine wasn't yelling at him. He wasn't mad, he was worried. It made the guilt that Kurt felt all the more crushing. No matter how much he wanted Finn, he felt absolutely sick about hurting Blaine. "No... no, he-he wouldn't," Kurt stammered as soon as he found his voice. He sounded less certain than he might have the day before, but the fact remained that Kurt believed that words. Finn was a lot of things - impulsive, naive, and sometimes a little stupid - but he wasn't cruel. Not intentionally so, in any case. "I'm fine. I just..." Kurt cast about for the right words and found none. "I'm just sorry."

Blaine relaxed a little, safe in the knowledge that Kurt wasn't harmed. Ever since his boyfriend had confided in him about the incident in which Karofsky had forced a kiss on him, Blaine had always been careful not to push things too far with Kurt. The idea of Finn forcing himself on Kurt... Blaine paused. Why was Kurt sorry? It suddenly dawned on him. Kurt had once harbored a deep crush on Finn, and now that this had happened... "Do you want to be with him?" A deep, shuddering breath, then, "What about us, Kurt?"

That was the real question, and certain as Kurt had been the night before, he now found himself wavering. Maybe the thing with Finn really had just been because of the alcohol. Maybe they'd never speak again, let alone... and then what about the fact that he felt so comfortable with Blaine? There had never been any pressure. With Finn there would always be lingering doubt, uncertainty as to whether the other teen was really okay with stopping, with waiting... Kurt took a shaky breath and decided that the whole truth would be the easiest thing. "I don't know. I... that's not fair to say, but I don't know. I feel like I woke up and the sun was suddenly purple. Nothing's..." He gestured, trying to find the words, and nearly dumped his coffee on himself in the process, "clear."

Blaine decided that it might have been easier if Kurt had simply taken a knife and shoved it deep inside of his chest because that's exactly what standing there and hearing those words felt like. His hands dropped away from Kurt's shoulders, and Blaine blinked away tears that threatened to fall. "I had something else to tell you..." He swallowed hard. "...something I hoped would make you smile." //God, Kurt, when you smile...// "I'm transferring to McKinley to be with you."

The situation was terrible, the moment ruined by his own confession, but despite it all, Kurt found that he couldn't help smiling. "Oh, Blaine..." It was so sweet, so thoughtful, so exactly the kind of thing that Blaine would do. Kurt set his coffee aside and reached for the other teen's hands. "I know I've made a mess of..." Kurt paused and then confessed, "okay, of everything. Just... you know I wouldn't ever... that I'd never hurt you on purpose, right? You probably hate me right now," the thought made Kurt's throat tighten, "and you probably should, but you're... no one's ever... ever accepted me the way you do. I don't want to ruin that."

"I don't hate you," Blaine assured him, "I could never hate you..." He couldn't feel his heart beating, which wasn't a surprise considering it had shattered into a million pieces. If he had any sense then he should have walked away, but Blaine couldn't. He loved Kurt too damned much. //Kurt, I love you. I love you more than anything, and I've never said that to anyone before.// "You and Finn," he could barely get the words out, "I know you liked him long before I ever came along. Maybe you should talk to him? Find out where things stand?"

Kurt nodded, but instead of feeling elated at the idea, he felt oddly numb. He didn't want to talk to Finn. He did, but he didn't. After being with Blaine again, he wasn't sure whether he was hoping to get blown off or dreading it. A little of both, he suspected. Kurt gave Blaine's hands a squeeze and then let them go, realizing that he didn't have any right to take such a liberty. "I should. I... can I... can I call you? Later? Or... or you call me?"

Blaine couldn't believe he was letting Kurt go. Maybe it was because he was too close to tears, and too hurt to talk anymore? Kurt had become his whole world and now that world was collapsing around him. "Yes, of course," he heard himself agreeing, his head nodding. "Call me, and let me know... how you're doing." Despite the pain tearing him apart, Blaine reached out to cup Kurt's cheek and stroke his warm, soft skin with his thumb. "Remember I love you, Kurt - no matter what." He leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to Kurt's lips before turning and leaving.

As soon as he was out of sight around the corner, Blaine punched and kicked at the wall. He grazed his knuckles, wincing as he leaned his forehead against the bricks. The dam barely holding back his emotions burst, and Blaine completely fell apart. How could everything have gone so wrong?